Silent Cries
by Abisian
Summary: December has suffered serious damage, no one seems to know what happened or why, and to Vash this plant dilemma is complicating. If these new Plants don't gain some sense soon, they could destroy all of Gunsmoke! ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I really have to do this? Okay, you already know this I'm sure but I don't own Trigun. I wish I owned a lot of things, and this is one of them, but sadly, no . . . Enjoy.

Chapter 1. Wanderer

The sweltering heat was making the hairs on the back of his neck prickle. It was like this all the time, and he was surprised that he still wasn't used to the heat. He sighed and looked down at the canteen in his hands. Water . . .

Or, at least, he wished there was water in it. There hadn't been a drop of water in that canteen for two days, and for two days he had been wondering around in the desert alone. It was too much to hope that someone would come along and give him a ride to the next town. He was Vash the Stampede, after all. He was sure that when he set off it wouldn't take two whole days to get to December. But then again, he thought he was going around in circles because he kept seeing the same sand dune twice.

Sighing again Vash stood from his little spot in the sand and prepared to keep going. He hadn't gone far when he saw the top of a Plant beaming in the blazing sun coming into view. All he had to do was get to the top of that sand dune and there it would be! December! Or, well, he hoped it would be December.

Though weak with lack of sleep and water he began to run, but as more of the city came in to view he started to slow down. The city, if you could even call it that anymore, looked as though the Plant had blown up, only much worse. Half was buried in sand, most of the next portion was nothing but piles of stone and rubble and debris, and the rest seemed to be makeshift hospitals, shelter for what appeared to be half the population, and a place to get water.

The Plant had blown, however, but Vash couldn't remember ever seeing a city looking like this because a Plant broke down. Actually, it wasn't even cracked on the surface. It was as if it just . . . stopped. 

He began to make his way toward the city, his boots trailing footsteps in the sand. Call it curiosity if you want, but he was aching, itching, to find out what had caused the Plant to break down before coming to the normal like ending they usually served.

It seemed that for a very long time as Vash ventured forth into the city that not even playful children had dared or been allowed to go off into the rubble. He couldn't blame them, in any case, it was dangerous, after all. But . . . The Plant . . . Why would it just quit like that?

As he came to the center of the city he saw a few people looking through the wreckage, probably searching for useful items and things like that. After the full realization of this destruction hit him he had to wonder if this even was December! The last time he had been here with . . . well, with them, it had been much different. It had seemed healthy, beautiful, and in full working condition. But the Plant had given out. 

Well, Vash still didn't believe that this was December so he stepped up to an old man who was fishing around in the half left of what appeared to have been a bar and asked if this was in fact the city of December. The man looked at him crazy for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah, this is the place," he told him. "Or, well, it used ter be. It ain't really nothin' no more, is it?"

"Well, can you tell me what happened to it?"

"It's really hard ter tell ya. No one really knows the truth abou' what happened or who done it. The attack was at durin' the day, right out in the sun an' everything! But, well, on'y one person managed ter catch sight of everythin'. Messed 'er up a little, too. Well, I suppose you couldn't say that, but she's a little . . . distant mos' the time. She's not really all there anymore, she's always thinkin' 'bout stuff no body can figger out."

The man turned away and continued to dig around. 

"Can you tell me who she is?" Vash had stuck his hands loosely in his coat pockets, watching the man. He stopped and looked over his shoulder at Vash, examining him. He then turned back and continued his work. Vash was about to step up again and repeat himself, but just as his nerve twitched the man replied, rather slowly.

"Well . . . I've heard 'er name is Meryl Stryfe, but I don't really know. I'd only heard of her a couple o' times b'fore, in the papers and stuff, and then when I had business with th' Bernardelli Insurance Company back when it was still around. But if ya wanna talk wit 'er she lives in one o' the last standin' buildings around, above the Sheriff's office. You might not get in, though, b'cause she got some woman to keep her comp'ny. Her name's Kate and she's a firecracker, so watch out."

Vash turned and thanked the man, then headed for the place he remembered as the Sheriff's office two years before when he had come here. Well, he was right in remembering where the office was located, but unfortunately for him the Sheriff was sleeping at his desk. Before he entered he looked up at one of the windows. Some woman was peering down at him as though she was disgusted by the sight of him. Vash knew he wasn't much to look at what with the dust and dirt covering him, but she still didn't have to stare at him like that. 

In one swift movement she turned sharply from the window and as he ventured silently into the Sheriff's office he heard loud footsteps on the stairs behind the sheriff and then a hurried, "I'll be right back," and a girl who appeared to be very short for her age (which, Vash guessed was only late teens) came walking down the stairs. 

The sheriff didn't move. 

Author's Notes: I know it's kind of short, but this is kind of like a prologue. The other chapters will be longer. Kate isn't a big character here, she's got a very small and insignificant role, so don't think I'm bringing in this new character. And this is not during series or post-series. This is just sort of out there. But yes, it does have a lot to do with the series. 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: This is the part where I say some witty little disclaimer line, but I'm all out and the good ones were taken. To get to the point . . . What kind of wack-a-spaz person are you?! 'Course I don't own Trigun! If I did, I wouldn't be here XP

Chapter 2. December

"What do you want?" she said, her hands on her hips. Vash was taken aback. He knew what he wanted but he couldn't find a way to make it sound as though he wanted to talk with an old friend. Well, he had to try.

"I'm, uh, I'm here to speak with Meryl Stryfe."

"You a reporter?"

"No. I'm just a friend, I just wanted to talk-"

"Who are you?"

Vash didn't answer. Despite the fact that it had been two years he was still known as Vash the Stampede. Fortunately enough, before he had to answer they both heard a voice calling from upstairs.

"Kate! Where's my coffee?" That had to be Meryl. Vash looked up and then glanced back at the girl in front of him. She looked a little angrier now as she turned, mumbled, "Go on up," and disappeared through a door to Vash's left. When she was gone, Vash continued up the stairs. At the top landing there was a door in front of him and a door to the right and left. He guessed one was a bathroom and the other two bedrooms. The door in front of him was left opened and as he gazed at its insides he stopped. 

Sitting at a roll-top desk and typing furiously on a typewriter was Meryl Stryfe. She stopped and leaned back, stretching, then yelled, "Kate!" Before she said more, Vash spoke.

"I think she went to get your coffee." Meryl, without moving from her stretching position, turned her head to look at him. She looked at him hard for what seemed like a billion years, then: "What do you want here?"

That wasn't exactly the greeting that Vash was hoping for, but it was better than screaming at him. Problem was, Vash didn't know how to reply. 

"I . . . I, er, just wanted to say hi." It sounded more like a question than anything, and he looked like he was awaiting her approval. Really, he hadn't been thinking of Meryl. He had actually come to December for water and a place to stay for a while. He hadn't really thought about her until that old man started talking about her witnessing the fall of December.

"I suppose . . ." Meryl said nothing else and turned back to continue on her typing. It couldn't be for the Bernardelli Insurance Company, according to that old man it had been destroyed. Vash still wanted to talk with her, so he said the first thing that came to his mind.

"Where's Milly?"

"She left, about a year ago. She's in Augusta or some place like that. I haven't really been keeping track of her lately, though she has sent me letters."

"Oh . . ." Vash moved a little more into the room. He had become more interested in what had happened to December, but he didn't want to ask her right out about it. She could be sensitive to that subject, for all he knew. But . . . It just sort of came out like that.

"That's what you came here for?" Meryl said this before Vash even realized the question had left his mouth. Feeling a little foolish, he replied.

"Well, actually, no. I came here for a pit stop, but I kinda heard about it and, well . . . you know . . ."

"No, I don't know, but I understand."

"So . . ."

"No, Vash."

"No?"

"You know what I mean. I won't tell you anything. It's none of your business. Besides, what would you be able to do about it?" Meryl had a point. It wasn't his business and there really wasn't anything he could do about it, but he just wanted to know. "And where is she with my coffee?" Meryl stood and began to stalk downstairs. Vash watched her go and walked into the room, looking over the typewriter. It was a typed letter to Milly. '. . . And I don't expect it to get better . . . Same dream over and over again . . . And the plant still hasn't been fixed . . . I'm beginning to wonder if it ever will . . ." Vash stopped there. Of course it wouldn't be fixed soon. After a year, in the least, without so much as a worker go near it . . . People should evacuate the city and move on to a new one, but Vash knew too well that Meryl wouldn't go.

Vash moved away from the typewriter and began to examine the walls. Large newspaper clippings were framed and hung there, most of them about Milly and Meryl's work at Bernardelli, some of them summarized reports that Meryl had turned in about them chasing Vash, and then one clipping from a newspaper in Augusta, probably sent from Milly, about the destruction of December. Not much info was there, only telling Vash things that he had already known. Somewhere in there he read the line '. . . and this could be the work of Vash the Stampede, after going into hiding nearly two years ago . . .' Vash was surprised to see that line underlined in red. 

He heard Kate and Meryl coming up the stairs again and pretended to be reading a clipping about the insurance girls chasing him. As they entered and Meryl sat down, Vash turned back. Kate was looking at him un-approvingly, her hands on her hips.

"Do you want something?" she asked, not even bothering to sound courteous. 

"Oh, um, do you have any water?" Vash asked innocently. He heard her give a small growl and turn around, saying, "Be right back." Vash scratched the back of his head, then asked, "What's the deal with her?"

"I dunno. She's always like that," came Meryl's short and simple reply. Nothing was said between the two for a little while, in which Meryl finished her letter. She took of off the typewrite and signed it, then folded it.

"Why don't you deliver it in person?" Vash asked as he watched her putting it in an envelope and sealing it, writing Milly's name across it. He would have asked earlier, but he didn't want to make it seem like he had read it while she was downstairs.

"You're right, Vash, I should deliver it in person, but I can't leave."

"No, you just don't want to." Meryl didn't reply. "Why don't you tell me anything about what happened to December? You saw it, don't you know who did it? What did it? Or why the plant stopped?"

Meryl hesitated before replying, "He was after you, Vash."

"He?" Meryl only shook her head. 

"Don't worry about it, Vash." Vash couldn't do that, both of them knew, but he didn't want to press on anymore. "And I would go visit Milly, but why I can't is none of your business either." Nothing more was done or said until Kate came back into the room. Vash jumped from his seat near the window and scared Kate out of her wits as he advanced on her quickly. He snatched the cup from her hand and gulped it down quickly. 

"You animal!" Kate said angrily. 

"Hey, now, can't we all just get along?"

"No! How can anyone ever get along with Vash the Stampede?" Vash looked at Meryl, who shrugged a 'no' to the question his eyes clearly asked her. 

"H-how did you-?"

"I know you very well, Vash. You saved my aunt from Pa Nebraska and Goseph. I still don't like you, despite what my aunt and her colleagues said about you. Even Meryl has talked about you before, but after all that destruction and blowing a hole in the moon, you're still an outlaw, and I still don't like you."

"Well, I'm honored you've done you're homework and everything, but you honestly don't know a thing about me," said Vash. Meryl was only listening to and watching the situation. Honestly, she had to agree with Vash. She and Milly really knew the most about him, even though they knew very little, but it was still more than Kate knew. She had only been told second hand from friends and family who had seen him, but Meryl had spent quite near a year with him and still didn't know who he really was.

Kate scowled. "As if I wanted to know anything about you anyway! I've heard enough already to pin you as a murderous outlaw!"

"Murderous?" Even Meryl knew Kate was pushing it. Vash was far from being a murderer. 

"Kate," Meryl warned in a deep voice. 

"Hmph." Kate ignored her. "So what if you saved a bunch of people? You're still worth that sixty billion, and the only reason I haven't shot you is because you did save my aunt's life."

"It's not like you would have hit him anyway," said Meryl, defending Vash. It wasn't that she was on his side, but it was just the simple truth. Even at close range she wouldn't even have come an inch to hitting him.

"What, you're on his side now?"

"No. It's the truth. If your aunt told you everything that happened then you should know what he's capable of." Vash wasn't saying anything. He wasn't angry at being called a murderer or anything, he was just a little . . . confused. She didn't even know him, why make such harsh accusations?

Kate sighed. "Fine. You want more water?" Vash looked at her and she took the cup. "Yes? No? Maybe?"

"Yes, please." As she left out [again] Vash turned to Meryl, who spoke before he asked his question.

"I suppose that's why she acts the way she does . . . I've told her about you and how Milly and I used to track you down. I don't know why she'd think that way about you though. Not a lot of what she said was completely true."

"But some of it was?"

"Yes, Vash, some of it was. You're not murderous, but you are an outlaw. You did save her family, I did tell her about you, you did blow the hole in the moon, and destruction seemed to follow you wherever you went. Though the moon and the destruction of two cities wasn't your fault, it did happen to you, and that's what she's heard. I've explained it many times but apparently she didn't listen to me."

"Meryl, I have killed before, by my own hands and because of others following me."

"Legato Bluesummers was going to die anyway, you knew about Knives's plan."

"But I killed him, Meryl. Kate was right."

"No. Vash, no she wasn't and you know that perfectly well. If you had another choice I know you wouldn't have done it. Don't feel guilty like that." Meryl's tone of voice suggested that she didn't want to hear him whine. This was only partly true. What she said was true. "Vash what are you doing here?" He had told her earlier but the answer 'a pit stop' just didn't suffice.

"I didn't have any water-"

"I noticed."

"- and so I stopped here for water and a place to sleep."

"How long were you out there?"

"About two days . . . I think." Meryl chuckled. 

"I thought you would have had enough sense to get a vehicle or get on a sandsteamer or something." 

"I thought about it."

"Could've fooled me." 

Kate entered the room [again] with the water and thrust it into Vash's hand, careful not to spill it. 

"Sheriff downstairs is awake, Meryl," she announced. "And no, I didn't wake him up. Well . . . maybe dropping that rack of canteens may have had a part in it, but what will I tell him?" 

"Tell him?" Vash questioned, looking from Meryl to Kate.

"Tell him there's some trouble over in the northern part of December. That'll get him away from here for a while." When Kate went downstairs (A/N: yes, I KNOW, but she's an errand girl, so to speak ^_^;) Vash questioned Meryl again.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the only reason I'm up here with the Sheriff is because he thinks I'm a vital piece of information about the city, so he won't let me have certain . . . er, visitors, you included. If he were to hear us talking he'd come up and check on me."

"That's why you can't go to deliver that letter to Milly?"

"Right. I can assure you that if it weren't for that damned sheriff down there I'd be on my way right now, maybe even living over there." Vash didn't expect her to say that. 

"Aren't you afraid that Kate might say something to him about me?"

"No. Even though Kate doesn't like you, she wouldn't disrespect the trust I have in you. You're harmless, I've told her that. Even though she doesn't listen I'm sure she wouldn't do it. Well, that, and the fact that she might think she owes you something."

"Why would she think she owes me something?"

"Her aunt, probably, but I try not to get too close into her family life or anything like that. All I know is that most her family lives in Little Jersey and she'd rather be here than there." Meryl walked to the window and peered out, just in time to see the Sheriff running off down the dusty road, dodging the bits of broken building that lay there.

"Why tell him that? You're not going to leave anyway, right?"

"I don't like him much, but you're right, I suppose. Where would I go? Kate's the only-" 

"Hey, Meryl!" Kate called up the stairs. 

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Some guy here is wantin' to, uh, speak with you." Vash picked up a shake in her voice. 

"All right, I'll be right down." Meryl stood and began to walk down the stairs. Vash followed slowly and silently. He waited, looking around the corner. There stood a man Vash had never seen before, a little shorter than him yet tall all the same. Meryl stood outside the door talking for a minute. Kate began to go back toward the stairs and Vash grabbed her arm. She yelped quietly and turned, scowling.

"What?"

"Who's he?" 

"What, are you spying now?"

"No, who is he?" Kate looked at Vash for a minute. 

"His name is Joseph, why?"

"You know his name, why not tell Meryl who he was?"

"If I had said who he was she never would have spoken with him. It's really important that she does, but she knows what he wants."

"He's been here before?"

"Yeah, plenty of times. He comes in about twice a month to try and convince her to tell somewhat about . . . about it but it never works. Poor guy is so persistent."

"How do they know each other?"

"Curious, are you? Well, I don't really know. Meryl keeps insisting he's a friend, but I dunno. Says he comes over from somewhere like Carcasses or some place like that. Weird how he shows up at odd times. Doesn't really matter to me though. I just wish she'd hear him out."

"Odd times?"

"Yeah. Like, when Meryl is downstairs, alone, or when the Sheriff leaves. Sheriff doesn't like him too much."

"It's like he's watching her . . ." Vash stated. He looked around and began to quietly climb the stairs again. He looked around the room, then stood in front of the window. The buildings were littering the ground, but Vash knew there had to be another building somewhere, from what the old man had said. '. . . one of the last standing buildings . . ." It was not too far away, a building standing a little above the ones where half was blown away. The roof and part of the wall was gone, but it was still there. It was the perfect distance and hiding place, and placed just enough away to not be seen . . .

"When did he start showing up?" Vash questioned further.

"Well . . . I little before the accident. I hadn't been here long, he tried convincing her to come with him, saying things like she'd be happier there, I suppose he meant Carcasses, but like I said, I dunno. Then the It happened and the Plant blew and the town was blown apart and about a month later he started trying to convince her to tell someone what had happened." 

"You were around, don't you know anything that happened?"

Kate didn't say anything for a minute, just kept her head down, her curly brown hair falling in front of her shoulders. When she looked up, her green eyes firm, she said, "I can't tell you everything, but I can tell you some." Vash looked at her, eager for her to continue. She took a deep breath. "Okay . . . Meryl and I were out in town. We had just got groceries and were going to go to Milly's to make this cake for Milly's brother or something like that. Rough winds had begun to come in, so we were probably the only ones out, and we had cloaks to protect us from the sand. We wouldn't have been in town if Milly's hadn't been so close, but that's just how it went. There was this really bright flash of light. We looked over toward the Plant and this figure came flying over it, but I couldn't really see because the Plant was getting brighter. Meryl shouted something, but I couldn't hear very well because this really high-pitched noise had started- I supposed it was from the plant- and she pushed me down and threw my cloak over my head. I could see or hear anything else." 

This really wasn't much help, but Vash still didn't have time to think about Kate's words before the door slammed and angry footsteps began to storm up the stairs in a rage. 

"Meryl! Calm down!" Kate said, alarmed, as Meryl began to kick and throw things. She was muttering angry words to herself, but Vash couldn't understand her. Vash looked over his shoulder and out the window again, where the Sheriff was running back to the office. 

"Um . . . Kate?"

"Meryl, don't worry about him . . ."

"Kate?"

"Just a minute, Vash."

"I think you should-"

"Hold on a minute, would ya?"

"But-"

"WHAT?" Kate turned abruptly, angered by Vash's annoyance. Vash, on the other hand, was simply taken aback.

"The, um, sheriff, he's back." Kate looked toward the doorway and rushed to shut it, locking it as well. She ushered Vash into the closet, which he was much too tall for, and had just shut the door when a rather large fist began to pound on the door.

"Kate! Kate, open this door!"

"Just a sec," Kate replied sourly. She returned to Meryl's side to attempt to make her act like no one had been there, and then unlocked the door. The sheriff stormed in and stopped in front of Kate.

"That's the second time you've sent me away on false pretenses this months, Kate! What's the deal? Are you . . . hiding something?" 

"That was a stupid question," Kate snorted to herself. The sheriff heard her, however, and sent a sharp slap across her left cheek. Inside the closet, Vash heard the sound of flesh making contact with flesh, but didn't move. He felt if he did then the sheriff would hear him and catch him. That would get him and the girls in trouble.

"Damn it, girl, I'm very close to kicking your ass off this planet."

"You could try. I guarantee you wouldn't get that far. Besides, you have no right to threaten me like that, not that it matters; you couldn't do as much to me as I could . . . say, Vash the Stampede." Vash held his breath at the mention of his name. 

"And what, may I ask, puts his name in your mouth?"

"It was only a comparison," Kate said simply. "Now, please, could you leave? You're disturbing Meryl."

"No, I will not leave. You're hiding something from me, girl, what is it?"

"I'm not hiding nothin' from you, now get out." 

Meryl was watching this unfolding before her, listening to their conversation. The smell of alcohol was definitely thick on the Sheriff. He must have been drinking before he woke up. Talk about a hangover. Meryl was brought from her examination of the sheriff, however, when he grabbed Kate by her hair and began to shove her down the stairs, all the while having Kate scream at him. Meryl quickly pulled open the closet door and Vash fell out.

"Vash, do something!" Vash quickly approached the doorway. Kate and the sheriff were already near the bottom of the stairs. 

"Um, you there, stop!" Vash said firmly. The sheriff turned to look at him.

"Who, me?" he said stupidly. 

"Let her go," he ordered.

"Whatcha gonna do 'bout it, big fella?" the sheriff said drunkenly. 

"Uh . . ." Vash seemed a little confused. He had obviously not been faced with a situation like this very recently. The sheriff chuckled and was about to continue forward when a gunshot went off, hitting the wall near the sheriff and ricocheting off it to hit the sheriffs wooden chair. Vash looked over his shoulder at Meryl, who was holding a derringer by her side. Sheriff turned, pushed Kate to the floor, and began back up the stairs toward Vash. 

"Vash!" Meryl said. "Aren't you going to do anything?"

"Um . . ." Vash still seemed a little lost. He looked back at the sheriff and struck only once before the man was falling back, unconscious. Kate moved over quickly to avoid being squashed under the burly man's weight. She looked at Vash for a minute, then:

"You idiot! Can't you do anything right?!"

Again, Vash looked kind of taken aback.

"Kate, cool it," Meryl sighed, putting her derringer back in her desk drawer. 

"I see you've calmed down," Kate stated sourly, walking back up the stairs, stepping on the sheriff as she went. Meryl stopped dead for a moment, then sighed and closed the drawer. Vash noticed this but didn't say anything. 

"Kate . . . You don't want to stay here, do you?" asked Meryl, shifting her gaze from her roll-top desk to Kate.

"It doesn't matter to me. With you is the only place I got, so where you go I do too, I suppose," Kate answered truthfully.

"I . . . I don't want to stay here any more."

"Huh? You don't . . . Want to stay in December?"

"No. I want to go to . . . I guess we could go to New Oregon, or Little Jersey, or maybe Carcasses." Meryl gave a small chuckle. "I think . . . Maybe it's time we visited Milly?"

Author's Notes: 

There was only ever 7 towns on Gunsmoke (it's a fact, they said so in 'Goodbye for Now' or some eppy around in there) and I know of 6 (December, Carcasses (sp?), New Oregon, Augusta, Little Jersey, and July), two of which were destroyed. What is the last one?! 

You may have noticed that some words were underlined, since I can't do italics, the underlined words are supposed to be in italics.

And I think I changed my mind, I think Kate's role may be a little more important than I said in the previous chapter. I know, Kate's an OC and people are probably sick of OC's, worried that they'll be sucky Mary-Sues and crap, but I had very good luck in my first and only OC, maybe I'll have luck here too ^_^ 

One more thing . . . I don't remember if that guy was Pa Nebraska and I think his name was Goseph. That's how heard it, that's how I spelled it, so give me a cookie . . . Really. ^_~ R/R!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I'm beginning to wonder if I should even put this at the beginning of every chapter. It is a waste of wonderful space (no rhyme intended). I'm sure you already knew this, but I don't own Trigun. I can dream, can't I? (Don't answer that)

Chapter 3. Milly

Vash had convinced Meryl to stay put one more night in December. Kate had been forced to give up her bed for Vash, who hadn't slept in days. She didn't approve of it, but Meryl had insisted. 

In the early hours of the morning, Vash lay awake. The sound of angry voices could be heard next door. Though they were disturbing his slumber quite a bit, he couldn't help but try to lay as still as possible and hold his breath so he could hear them.

"Meryl, I didn't mean to!"

"Oh, what, it just kind of slipped?" Meryl retorted angrily.

"No . . . He asked. I didn't tell him much."

"What did you say to him? How much did you let him know?"

"Not much. Just until the point where you threw the cloak over my head."

"Nothing else?"

"No." Kate sounded kind of ashamed of herself. Meryl was almost fuming. "Meryl, why does it matter anyway?"

"You don't know Vash, Kate. If he finds out anything else he'll get involved and . . . something bad will happen again, just like it always did. Besides . . . He told me not to."

"But how would He know? He isn't even here anymore, is He?"

"I don't know . . . I'm just worried. Death and destruction seem to follow Vash wherever he goes. If he gets involved in this, that could come into play again."

Kate was silent for a few moments. 

"Then . . . Why go over to Milly's place? Wouldn't that put her in danger?"

"Yes. It would put everyone in that town in danger, most likely, but Vash would see to it that no one got hurt. And Milly can very well take care of herself." Meryl gave a soft chuckle. "Yeah, right, who am I kidding? It'd probably be different. It has been two years since I've seen Vash, haven't really heard that much about him. Who's to say he's even thought of anymore?"

"Meryl, after more than 100 years, I'm sure he's thought of, and I meant on 'Wanted' posters." Meryl laughed.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, but I can't help but wonder if it'll be anything like 'Back Then'. Even though Milly and I nearly died every time you turned around and Vash was being confronted by someone who wanted the reward just about every day, I have to admit it was kind of fun."

"You're getting off topic, Meryl," Kate said.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Meryl . . . Just go to sleep, okay? We'll talk about this later." 

"Yeah, sure," Meryl yawned. Vash heard a squeak, announcing someone had sat on the bed, and then a sharp 'click', saying someone else shut the door. He silently stood and opened his door a bit. He looked left and right and began to walk down the stairs. 

The sheriff wasn't laying at the foot of the stairs anymore; he had been locked in the storage room until his sobered up or someone found him. Vash walked past his desk and to the storage room door. He pushed it open and moved to click the light on. Nothing happened.

"Forgot about that," he murmured as he remembered there was no electricity until the Plant was repaired. He made his way slowly to the counter where gallons of water had been placed since the faucets didn't work. He began to pour himself a glass of water, but he stopped when a faint scream from upstairs reached his ears.

He turned and ran toward the open door and up the stairs again. Meryl's door was locked and he could hear a rather angry voice inside.

"You've told him. That's breaking the rules. I told you to tell no one. Where is he?" Meryl whimpered but didn't reply. 

"Meryl! Just tell him!"

"No!" 

"Your friend is smart, Miss Stryfe. I'd tell me . . . Or your bright little friend over here could die." Vash heard a gun being cocked and immediately fetched his own, which had been hanging in his holster by his red coat. He shouldered the door and it flew open. A cloaked figure was baring down on Kate in the corner, a gun pointed at her, threatening to fire. Meryl had grabbed her derringer from the desk drawer and was pointing it at the figure. Vash knew she's probably never fire so he took that opportunity.

He fired once as a warning. The second one hit him, but quite amazingly, it bounced right off. Vash lowered his gun a few inches, staring at the figure, who laughed in mock amusement.

"Vash the Stampede," he laughed. After only a few moments he lunged at Vash and threw him over. The went tumbling out to the landing and Vash threw him over and he was thrown down the stairs. Vash stood immediately, ready for another attack, but it didn't come. The figure only laughed again and said, "I told her not to tell anyone. I told her someone would die if she broke the rules."

"What? People's lives are only a game to you?"

"I wouldn't say that, Vash, but you're quite close. I live by your brother's standards, and I agree with them. I can assure you, I'm only starting small. It will get worse."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Think about it for a while." With that he walked from the sheriff's office and out the door. Vash ran to catch up with him in the street but he was gone. 

"What was that?" Vash said, stepping back in. A very shaken Kate only looked at Meryl, who had her head bowed, before replying.

"You heard him, Vash. If we tell anyone who he is or what happened someone will die. He was after you first, but it seems it's turned into a game since then, and I have no doubt that it was a game when it started. He knows your weaknesses and he's using them to get to everyone else. If . . . If we say anything . . . He knows you so well that you'd be attracted to death like a magnet. It's just a way to get to you."

"He began with the city, Kate, and me. He says that's starting small. Think about what would be bigger . . ." Meryl turned and started back for her room. Kate and Vash watched her go.

"He's watching her too . . . But there's only that one place . . ."

"Vash, don't be stupid. You saw what he can do. Reflexes like that and you can bet that he doesn't need that building to spy people." Kate had a point but Vash couldn't help but to not ignore that other building. Sure, it was already occupied by the Joseph guy, and they weren't on the same side. Why would the cloaked figure get his own guy to tell Meryl to say something? It couldn't be so he could have a reason to kill. He'd kill on his own will.

"I guess it wouldn't matter," he said aloud. "We're leaving here tomorrow anyway-"

"And he'd follow," Meryl said. "Like you said he's probably watching us. If he is, then he either knows we're going to Little Jersey or he'll follow. I'd think that you, of all people, would figure that, Vash."

"Hey, now, I'm a little rusty," said Vash. Kate watched him as he headed back in to his room, then retreated to Meryl's. 

"Meryl, not too long and it'll be dawn. Don't you think we should get ready to go?"

"Vash doesn't carry much with him. Just give him some time to sleep and I can guarantee he'll be all the better when he wakes up. And you might want to fill a few canteens with water. That should hold us until we stop in the next town."

Vash yawned and stretched, standing stiffly from the small bed. It was dawn and Kate had just come in to wake him.

"Vash, how long do you think it'll take to get to the next city?" Kate asked as Vash began fitting the holster around his waist, slipping the gun in after that and grabbing his coat. 

"I don't really know, not too long . . . I hope. I can't remember if the next town is Carcasses or New Oregon." Kate watched him for a few moments until he was done. 

"I filled up some canteens for us," she stated.

"Good, we'll need them." Vash sounded and looked a little distracted as he fastened the buttons and buckles on his red coat. Meryl came walking into the room not long thereafter to announce that he was slow and they needed to get going. Vash, of course, didn't reply.

They really didn't carry much, one canteen each, Meryl having an extra set of clothes, Kate having an extra set of pants and a shirt. They would get a vehicle or hitch a ride in town or just out of town and probably end up walking some of the way, but at least they had a plan.

"Vash, I really don't understand how you wear that coat through the desert," said Kate. They had caught a ride, eventually, and they were riding in the back of a truck. Kate had rolled up the legs of her pants so they would look like shorts and rolled the sleeves up a bit on her shirt. 

"I . . . never really thought about it," Vash replied truthfully. Meryl sat against the side wall, enjoying the cool breeze as the truck sailed roughly over the sand dunes. Vash looked at her and began to wonder what she was thinking about. 

"Hey! Vash! Look!" Kate said. Vash looked over his shoulder. Kate had stood and was leaning over the side of the truck a little ways and pointing at something. Vash moved to kneel next to her. She was pointing at a Plant. She looked down at Vash to see his reaction. "Well? Is it a town?"

"No. The Plant . . . Is alone." Meryl moved over as well.

"How can you be sure of that, Vash? There's sand dunes in the way." Vash didn't reply. "You wanna check it out?"

"Yeah! Do you suppose it works?" Kate said eagerly. 

"I don't know if it works. I don't think there's a town there, though."

"Well, what would a plant be doing there without a city? The cities you blew up had plants, but you took those with the towns!"

"I . . . Don't know." Kate leaned over to peek inside the open window. 

"Hey, driver, stop here," she ordered. Before the truck came to a complete stop Kate had jumped from the back and was waiting impatiently for Meryl and Vash. When they had climbed down she pulled at them to make them get going.

"We're coming," Meryl said lazily, telling the truck driver to stay put for a few minutes, then following Kate across the long distance. Kate was in the lead, but as she neared the top of a sand dune she stopped. "What's wrong?" Meryl called ahead. Kate turned to them.

"Vash was right. There isn't a town there. But . . . It's weird." She turned back, apparently at a loss for words. Vash came to stand by her side and stared out, speechless as well.

The plant appeared to be whole, complete, but it seemed to have the same problem as December's Plant did; it just stopped. But littering the sandy ground around it were parts to what appeared to be several other Plants. 

"Do you suppose it was the same guy?" Kate whispered to Meryl, who kind of half shook, half nodded her head.

"There are several things that tell me it could and couldn't be that man. For one, if he lives by Knives's standards, why would he destroy Plants? Knives wouldn't destroy Plants, he was a Plant himself. But who else could have?"

"Knives is . . . Vash's brother?" Kate asked, remembering the man's words from earlier that morning. Meryl nodded her head. 

"Come on, let's go," said Vash after a moment. They headed back toward the truck. When they arrived, the driver seemed a little ticked and seemed as though he were about to drive off without them.

The truck driver only went a short ways longer before dumping them and going in a different direction. Kate had already used up her water while Meryl had half left. Vash's canteen had barely been touched.

"Vash, I just don't understand you," Kate said.

"I've heard many people say that," came Vash's mumbled reply.

"You haven't drank any water and you're wearing that really big red coat, and that black suit. Don't you ever get hot or tired?"

"You know . . . I've never really thought about that either," Vash admitted. Kate looked across Meryl to him and sighed. No one said anything until they approached the next town. 

"This place looks new," said Vash.

"Yeah, it is. This is August. It was recently rebuilt. I think a few more patches of construction are going on in little areas of the town. Milly told me in a letter that people from all over Gunsmoke with more fortunate cities were donating money to repair the Plant," Meryl explained. They continued into the city, the streets busier than ever.

"Like bees to a hive," Kate said. Meryl nodded in agreement. "December used to be busy like this." Again, Meryl nodded, then followed Vash, who had already started forward. "Milly lives right up here." Kate caught up to the two and showed them around a block of buildings to an ice cream shop.

"She lives above a store?" Meryl asked, looking up to the second floor.

"Yep. You remember she told you, don't you? She said that she helped her brother and his wife here since she doesn't work for Bernardelli anymore."

"Oh, yes, I remember now. I just didn't know she lived with them." They proceeded into the store where Milly stood behind the counter wearing a brown apron and handing a small group of children ice cream. When the children became more preoccupied with their ice cream to be concerned about anything else, Milly looked up.

"Sempai!" In a flash Milly was across the counter top and embracing Meryl. "You didn't tell me you were coming! And Mr. Vash!" Milly jumped from Meryl to Vash and shook his hand. "I didn't know you were with Meryl!"

"Define 'with'," Meryl grumbled. 

"And Kate! I have a present for you upstairs." Kate smiled. "Shall I take your bags up?"

"No, Milly, that won't be necessary. I can do it," Kate offered. She grabbed the only two bags that had been brought along and proceeded up the stairs. 

"I see the town's been rebuilt," Vash said, attempting conversation.

"Yep. We were lucky that we got enough money. I'm perfectly content, though. Personally, I was lucky enough to be able to have a place to stay!"

"So this is where you work . . ."

"Well, I help my brother and sister-in-law here because they're letting me stay with them, but I work part-time at the donut shop across the street because I don't make money in the store."

"You work for free?"

"It was the least I could do. I use my money that I make from the donut shop to pay for myself so my brother won't have to."

"Well, that was thoughtful," Meryl said with a smile. 

"Yep. And I work at the orphanage too. I spend most of my time there, when I'm not at the donut shop or over here."

"Orphanage?"

Milly nodded. "I helped with the reconstruction, so I requested building an orphanage. These kids right here go there, but I let them in the shop for free donuts or candy or ice cream or something. I know it's what He would have done." Meryl and Vash knew who she was talking about. Nicholas D. Wolfwood, the cross-toting priest with a tobacco addiction.

"Anyone want donuts? I bought them just this morning." Milly took a box from the counter and held it out. Vash took it from her. Meryl sighed and looked back at Milly.

"You'd think he hasn't eaten in weeks." Milly giggled and looked up at the clock on the wall.

"Six o' clock . . . He should be waking up any minute now."

"You're brother?"

"Yep."

"Why would he be waking up now?"

"He travels a lot and prefers traveling at night when it's cooler out."

"How will he react to Vash?" Meryl lowered her voice to a whisper.

"I've told him about you and me traveling with him and that he wasn't bad. He should trust me, but you're right, I guess we could be a little more cautious." A large yawn came from the stairs and Milly and Meryl looked over to see a short man, apparently just now waking up, walking into the store. He was already dressed and seemed to be ready to leave. 

Milly smiled and approached her brother. "Big brother, I told you about Meryl Stryfe, my former partner, and Mr. Vash, remember?"

The man looked at Meryl and smiled, greeting her. Then he looked at Vash. Apparently he had taken Milly's word for it and didn't seem too afraid of the tall man sitting at the corner table. Of course, stuffing his face with cream-filled donuts didn't help.

He crossed the room, grabbing what appeared to be a traveling cloak off a peg, and turned to Milly. "Well, I'm off. Say bye to Mel and Kath for me when they get back." Milly waved, smiling broadly, and her brother walked from the store, throwing the cloak around himself as he set off down the street. 

"Gee, those were good! I haven't had donuts in forever!" Vash said with his mouth still full of chocolate cream and glazed bread. Milly giggled and took the box, throwing it in the tall can that stood by the door. 

"You guys look tired."

"Yes, we are," Meryl said politely. "But I just want a shower."

"Upstairs and to the right, first door you come to."

"Thank you." Meryl walked upstairs and Kate came down.

"Hey, Milly, can I get some ice cream?"

"Yep. What kind?" Vash watched and listened as Kate read off about four different flavors to Milly, who scooped them into a bowl. 

At least Milly was happy.

Author's Notes: That's it for chapter 3. Sorry it took so long ^_^; r/r!!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Annoying little buggers, these are . . . If it says Disclaimer, then that means I don't claim Trigun . . . right?

Supposed italics are gonna have around them and will be underlined

Chapter 4. Typhoon

The morning sun streaming through the room made her remember where she was as soon as she woke up: Somewhere other than December. Not that she was complaining or anything. 

December hadn't had that little sunbeam of pleasure in a very long time, or at least it seemed that way. Then again, December wasn't really December, was it? Not like it used to be, anyway. The streets were always busy and full of life, much like the new streets of Augusta. Odd how the city had become populated by thousands so quickly. Another thing that had once been similar to December, that was. Only now . . . 

Meryl had shared the guest room with Kate, Vash offering to take the couch for himself. Kate and Vash were already awake, being the early-birds that they were, and Milly had most likely gone off to one of her jobs. Meryl stood from the bed and dressed, then walked downstairs where Vash was reading this morning's newspaper. Kate was somewhere behind the counter. 

Meryl looked at Vash, his eyes roaming back and forth over the paper before he turned the page. 

"Ice cream! Want some, Meryl?" Kate came up, loud, as usual, holding a large silver pot by the handles. 

"Ice cream this early in the morning?"

"Well . . . it's milk . . ."

"But it's sugar, too." For a nineteen-year-old, Kate sure had a knack for acting like a child. 

"I was only offering." Kate began dipping some of the frozen delight into a bowl, then put the pot back in the freezer. She grabbed a spoon, stuck it in the ice cream, and turned to the register to put a few dollar bills in. "Want some, Vash?"

Vash didn't reply. "Vash?" Kate looked over at the man in the corner. 

"Huh? Oh, no thanks, Kate. I got some donuts this morning." Meryl looked at the table he was sitting at. The box of donuts that had been covered a moment ago was now open, but only had one donut missing. For Vash to have only eaten one donut since earlier in the morning meant something was wrong.

"Are you sick?" Meryl asked. Vash didn't reply. He had stopped moving, his eyes staring at one spot in the paper. "What is it?" She walked to stand behind Vash. In the mid-section of the paper was a picture, obviously taken at night, but it seemed so familiar. "Vash?"

"It's December," he muttered. "It was December."

"W-what do you mean?"

"It was attacked last night. That there is a picture of what used to be the sheriff's place. Couldn't recognize it, could you? That's because it was reduced to practically nothing."

"No . . ."

"Yes." Vash stood. "Here. You can read it. I'm going out." Vash walked from the shop, leaving the donuts behind. Meryl clutched the sides of the newspaper tightly in both hands. 

"K-Kate . . ."

"Hm? Yeah, Meryl?"

"He knows we've left."

Milly hummed as she emptied the wash pan out, turning the sand into mud. She walked to the well to fill it up again, stopping as a gunshot was fired and a scream erupted. She dropped the pan and ran back into the building. As she entered she saw a group of men with guns holding up everything. The children had been backed into the corners with the Helpers. Milly watched as one of the men, apparently the leader, grabbed a girl from the group of children and held the gun to her head.

"Tell me where she is or the kid gets her head blown off!" the man demanded. Milly ran forward and took the girl from his grasp.

"Stop it!" she yelled. "You have no right to threaten these children, you bully!" The man only smirked at Milly. 

"Just who I needed to see." He grabbed Milly's hair and pulled. Milly let go of the little girl and tried to pry the man's hand off her, but to no avail. He pulled her out into the main area where he threw her to the ground and kneeled beside her, this time placing the gun to her temple. "You're Milly Thompson?"

"Yes, I am, now let me go!"

"I hear you know a little bit about Vash the Stampede. You wanna tell me where I can find him?"

"Vash! Vash!"

Vash turned sharply as his name was called. Kate was running as hard and fast as she could to get to him, a distressed look plastered clearly on her face. She dove into his arms and he caught her. She looked up at him, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Mr. Vash, they got Milly and Meryl!"

"What?"

"Two men, they came in the shop with Milly and a little girl and threatened to shoot if they didn't tell where you were! Meryl said you weren't there so they took her too and now they're coming after you, Vash!"

"Calm down, Kate. How many were there?"

"Twenty, at the least. What are you going to do, Vash?"

"Damn it . . . There's twenty. That's too many to fight in the town . . . Kate, find them and say that I've just run to the outskirts of town. Hurry!"

Vash and Kate departed, going in separate directions. Vash began to head toward the small mountains, hoping to god that those bandits believed Kate's story. 

Kate was panting heavily and had a pounding stitch in her side by the time she got back to the shop. The men stood outside but a few were indoors, sitting on the counter or at the little table, or just standing in a corner fidgeting with his gun. 

Kate bounded inside, completely out of breath. Still, she managed to get her information out. "He's- pant- he gone - pant- ran outta town like- pant- like a scared d-dog," she said, leaning with her palms on her knees. "H-he went to the- pant- to the mountains." 

The larger man at the table stood and smirked. "Ran like the coward he is. And I thought Joseph said he was a real gunslinger." The man ordered his men out and they carried Milly and Meryl with them.

"Sir? Excuse me, sir," Meryl said from behind the obvious leader. "Did you just say Joseph?"

"Yeah. What's it to you?" Meryl didn't reply. She looked down at the ground without saying a word. Joseph . . . Joseph had ordered this man and his group here for Vash . . . because of her, Meryl . . . then dragged Milly into it in the process. 

"Mister, I'd really appreciate it if you told me what we have to do with this?" Milly said sternly from beside her. The man only grunted then stopped as several shouts from ahead of him sounded and gunshots were heard. 

"There he is! That's him! Let's get out of here!"

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" the bully said, grabbing a running man by the collar and pulled him off the ground. 

"That's him sir! Vash the Stampede! He's comin' for us! Let me go!" 

Coward, Meryl thought as the leader dropped the man into the dust. He scrambled away, trailing sand behind him. The few remaining gunmen were aiming at a figure in the face of the rock structure. 

"Oh, look, Meryl! It's Mister Vash!"

"Heh, heh," said Meryl sarcastically. "Yeah, that's him all right-"

"MERYL, GET DOWN!"

"Meryl . . . Something's coming."

"Don't be silly, Kate."

"But . . . Meryl, the ground is shaking. Can't you feel it?" Meryl paused and looked down.

"Yeah. but I can bet you it's probably just a sandsteamer." Kate fell silent and looked down at the fabric stacked neatly in the brown paper back held securely in her arms. The blue-hued fabric would be used to make new curtains to go over the east window in Meryl's bedroom and the white would be the much-needed under sheet of her bed. The yellow would be for Kate. They had also bought the things needed to make a cake for Milly's brother. 

A typhoon was reported to have been sighted some hundred iles north of December, meaning it would soon be arriving, but Meryl and Kate figured that since they were going to be cooped up in the house all day and night, they might as well have a good craft to work on, so they went to quickly pick up some fabric and do what they had been planning for weeks: make new curtains and bed sheets and celebrate a party with Milly.

"You think the typhoon is about here yet?" Meryl asked, looking out at the northern side of the city. She sounded kind of worried as she peered over the rooftops to look out at the desert. It was especially hot today, and unfortunately the sand blowing around forced the occupants of December to wear cloaks when they went outside . . . if they went outside. There wasn't a soul on the street this afternoon.

"I dunno, maybe . . . Uh, Meryl, d'you s'pose we should get back to the house? If that typhoon is nearly here we wouldn't wanna be out here and unprepared when it hits."

"Yeah, you're right-" Meryl stopped dead in her tracks and looked in the direction of the Plant. The tip of the bulb could just barely be seen over the tops of the buildings, but even then Meryl knew something was wrong . . . The wind began to blow hard and the sand and dust began to rise. 

"The hell is that-?" Kate began before a very high-pitched noise erupted from the direction of the Plant. Kate looked that way as well just in time to see a figure bound over the silver support of the Plant and go over the other side. Meryl pushed the teen down and pulled her cloak hood over her head; the bags of groceries and materials were tumbling, forgotten, down the street, carried by the fierce winds. 

Meryl kept her arm on Kate to keep her on the ground, but after a few minutes she led Kate to the closed saloon and told her to hold on to the support pole. Kate did just that, wrapping her arms tightly around the pole, her hood over her eyes. Meryl turned and began heading back into the street, her cloak pulled tightly around her ears. The sand stung her skin and the dark blue cloak whipped around her ankles. 

Now she was approaching the Plant to identify the problem. She couldn't even look at the Plant, the light so bright she felt like her irises would fry. When she finally did look at it, she noticed the ground was shaking, and a humming sound was heard over the wind. Meryl stared up at it, the captivating, alabaster glow not letting her eyes fall astray. 

But then she became worried. She now realized it might not be too safe around the Plant. Who knows what was happening to it. It was obviously malfunctioning, she might end up in the way of the repairmen. Or maybe . . . the problem was deadly? Meryl turned away as the high noise got even higher and louder. It was like a tea kettle, and the squeaking was only getting much worse. 

It was too much for her eyes and ears, so Meryl turned and began to run against the wind to get away from the Plant, but then an even louder noise erupted and a heat nearly scorching her cloak came at her like wildfire, and she knew . . . the Plant had died.

Author's Notes: Wasn't gonna end it here, but oh well. I love cliffhangers, though this isn't really one, is it? Well, technically, if you go above the 'dream' thing up there ^_^ 

NEED HELP! Okay, I want the story to be layed out a certain way at FF.net so I've been uploading the text from 602 documents with htm (html). I want to upload in italics because I lot of the stuff I write requires italics. Does anyone around here who uploads in htm format know how to upload the italics, cuz it ain't workin'?! 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: *Sigh*

Chapter 5. Stampede

Note: Words with '--' around them are telepathic speech.

She knew the Plant had died.

She turned to face the large bulb, preparing herself for the shocking sight . . . but it didn't come. She stared up at it, the face flawless, no cracks . . . It just . . . stopped. 

Meryl had forgotten about the wind, and about Kate, and the fabric being blown away . . . Her attention was focused now on the Plant. On the smooth surface, written either in blood or ink . . . were four letters. They glowed bright red, and even Meryl saw them clearly through the wind and sand . . . VASH. 

It had already been two days since the gunfight just out of town, and Vash had been forced to go back into hiding, staying in the caves out by the old, weathered mountains. Rumors had flown fast through the large and over-populated city, spreading like wildfire from one townsperson to the next. Really, only a few people had witnessed the gunfight, excluding Meryl, Kate, and Milly. Some of the man's henchmen that had been after Vash had gone into town to get patched up and had explained what had happened. One man even caught his conversation.

"Who sent you here? Truly?" Vash had asked. 

"Wouldn't matter. 'S not like yer gonna do nothin' 'bout him. You're too weak to kill 'im." Vash sighed, trying his best to keep patient. 

"I'll ask you again. Who sent you?" The smirk faded from the man's face and replied, 

"He's just a common man named Joseph, used ter live in Carcasses until his family got run out or killed or disappeared, or whatever. Moved tuh December and hired me as a hit man."

"If he's so common why were you interested?"

"None o' yer business." Deciding to give up, that the man would fess no more, Vash had left it at that. 

Meryl looked out the window and out at the dusty town. People were rambling back and forth on the porch to the small saloon, and people were running in the streets, especially the younger boys. Milly and Kate were sitting across from her, and she had her back to the window, looking over her shoulder to peer through the dirty glass.

"Meryl, something wrong?" Milly asked. Kate watched the two silently, sipping on her drink every few moments. Kate had her own thoughts to tend to . . . "Meryl?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah, Milly . . . I mean, no, nothing's wrong. I was just . . . thinking, that's all." 

"Oh." Milly looked down at her drink and said no more. Kate looked at Meryl, then over her shoulder and out the window. She was trying to bury herself back into her thoughts again . . . 'He's so weak,' she though, absently sipping her drink. 'He . . . won't kill a soul . . . Knives was right about him. He's nothing but a coward."

"Are you thinking too, Kate?"

"Oh . . . yeah, sure am." Kate sent a faint smile to Milly and continued to look out the window . . . and think.

"Excuse me, I'd like to buy these bullets." Vash set a small carton of silver bullets on the glass counter and looked up (well, actually, down) at the old man behind it. The man inspected the bullets for a very long time before ringing them up at the register. 

"That'll be all for ya."

"Sir?"

"You ain't gettin' nothin' else, now get out!" Vash looked at the man, who glared back with a vicious look carved into his frail features. Vash then smiled, set the money on the counter, took the bullets, and left. Outside, in the center of the town by the fountain, he sat on a bench, took out his gun, and began to load it. 

"Can't get a break around here," he murmured to himself. He glanced up, over his orange glasses, and spotted a pair of eyes looking at him across the street. He smiled and gave a small wave, but the little girl ducked a little more behind the corner of the wall. Vash looked at her for a moment, disappointment flooding his façade, but then he continued to load his gun.

Vash didn't look up again until he heard a small scream. He stood and saw the little girl that had hidden herself around the wall across the street was running to him. She ran behind him, her small hands grasping handfuls of his coat tightly. He could hear her whimpering around his knees and feel her body shaking as she pressed herself against his calves. 

But as Vash looked up, he saw nothing . . . nothing, except an adult body fall. The woman fell to his feet and he stared at her in horror. To his left, only a short distance away, he heard his name . . . "Vash . . .!" and a gasp. He looked over and there was Meryl, closely followed by Milly. They both stared in shock.

"It . . . It wasn't . . ." The townspeople were now gathering, horrified and frightened looks on their face. 

"It's Vash the Stampede!" one of the men finally shouted. The girl hanging on to Vash let go and got on her knees beside the woman. Vash watched the small girl, not moving, waiting . . . "Get the sheriff!" another man yelled. He waited for the sheriff to come a get him. 

"Vash, don't worry, we'll figure something out!" Meryl said as Vash was being taken away. Everyone watched as he walked calmly with the sheriff. Unfortunately, only two people other that Vash knew the truth behind this . . . the small child and the culprit.

Kate, Meryl, and Milly had their hands clamped tightly around the bars. They were looking inside the cell at Vash, who was sitting with his eyes averted to the ground. 

"We'll figure something out, Vash."

"Yeah, Mister Vash, sir, we'll have you out of here in no time!" 

Kate remained silent. 

'Vash is getting injusticely pinned again, isn't he?' 

'What? You can . . . you can . . . ?!'

'Duh.' The voice inside his head giggled. 'Never could figure it out . . . Why you always let this happen to yourself, I mean. You even refused to kill Them. Dominique the Cyclops, Monev . . . the rest of the Gung-Ho Guns . . . Of course, Legato was an exception, wasn't he?'

'How? How did you find out?' 

Kate giggled openly. 'I have my connections not only to Meryl but to people . . . Heh heh heh . . . much more powerful than even you, Vash. Catch my drift?'

'No . . .'

'You're right . . . But, you didn't hear that from me.' Kate began to walk away, from the cell block and eventually out of the entire building. Meryl watched her go before turning back to Vash.

"They wouldn't even look at the situation logically when Milly and I tried to explain it to them!" she said, obviously furious. "That woman was shot from behind, no way you could have killed her! They can't hold you for-"

"Yes, they can," he said, not looking up. "I'm still a wanted outlaw, and I'm still worth sixty billion double dollars. He can keep me here."

"B- bu . . . but . . ." Meryl couldn't seem to find a way out of this one. "Vash I'm sorry. We really are trying to get you outta here, though!"

"Honestly, Mister Vash the Stampede," Milly said, trying to comfort him as well. 

"Thanks, guys . . . But I'm kinda tired, so if you don't mind . . ." Vash was laying on his back with his eyes closed for quite awhile before Meryl finally left. Milly had gone when she was told, but Meryl had stayed behind and kind of watched him for a few minutes longer. 

Kate's POV

It was much cooler tonight than it had been in a very long time. In Augusta, at least. There was a slightly heavier wind out, which made it harder for me. Of course, I was wearing a heavy dark cloak. It irritated me, actually, whipping around my body as I headed straight from the ice cream shop to the west end of town . . . where the Plant had been rebuilt.

When I got to it, I looked around to make sure the coast was clear and I silently but swiftly opened the door and walked through. I looked around the large room. Everything seeming so foreign to me. I hadn't, after all, disabled a Plant in quite some time.

I scanned the central control panel for a few minutes before I began my work. Old Technology wasn't really that hard to understand. Of course, to humans it was like putting together a puzzle in the dark, which was basically what it was (metaphorically speaking) but to Plants like myself, and Vash, and Joseph, and Knives, it was a piece of cake.

When the bright lights inside the control box were extinguished, I knew my work had been a success. I ran from the Plant and went straight to the jail house. I knew Meryl and Milly had fallen asleep inside, sitting together on a bench just inside the cell block. I knew I shouldn't do this, because Vash was technically my enemy, but I had to get him and the others out of town before he had a chance to turn the Plant back on. He wasn't supposed to be in jail until the second murder was staged in Fondreake anyway.

I reached under my cloak and withdrew what I was to use to blow this stone building apart. A gun. But not just any gun. I gave a small laugh and pointed it at the front wall of the building. Knives had given it to me with special orders, and as soon as my angel arm is activated, there won't be such thing as a town called Augusta.

The short teen slung himself around the corner just as a pair of headlights came rolling his way. He pressed himself against the wall and peered around the corner. The truck had stopped and turned its headlights off, but he knew the men were still there. They knew he was there . . .

"Rath, we know you're there! Don't make us shoot!"

"I'd rather die!" the boy yelled back. 

"Rath, come on, don't do this," came a female voice. His guardian. Or, at least, who had claimed to be his guardian. 

"Get away from me!" he screamed. "Why can't you people leave me alone?!"

"Rath, it's not safe-" The boy walked calmly from the shelter of the wall and stood twenty feet in front of the truck. He laughed.

"Not safe? NOT SAFE?!" He doubled over with hollow laughter. "Zazzie was not safe. I can be trusted." He turned and began to walk down the street, still laughing. Now some people had been to peek out their windows and doors. Some of the men had even come to stand on the porches of their saloons. And then it went off.

The gunshot echoed around the sheltered part of the city, reverberating off the stone. Rath stopped laughing and stood still. He turned slowly, glaring, a furious look on his face.

"You shot at me," he said in mock surprise. "I figured you idiots would have learned by now." He narrowed his eyes, watching, listening, as the people he had once called his family screamed and writhed in their pain. He began a low laugh again and continued walking, their cries of pain following him. 

Kate looked down at her right arm in anger and disgust. Brain-waves from her partner had distracted her and she had totally missed her target, going straight up in the air, hitting nothing . . . not even the moon. Nothing had been accomplished. And to had insult to injury, the electricity had come back on, meaning the Plant had been fixed, and judging by how little time it took, it had to be a Plant. 

With her arm hanging limp by her side, Kate walked to the fountain and sat on the bench. She leaned her head back to talk.

'Rath, damn it, what'd you do?"

'They followed me, Kate, what was I supposed to do?!'

'You sent out a huge brain wave signal, you totally screwed me over! Now Knives will be furious, and it's all your fault! You even fixed the Plant!'

'I didn't do that! I haven't been anywhere near that thing. Don't go making conclusions. It could have been Joseph.'

'Joseph isn't in Augusta! He's in Fondreake!'

'Well, then . . .?'

'It wasn't a human, so don't suggest it. And it wasn't Vash, he's in jail.' 

'Can you think of anything else?' Kate's brain waves were silent. 'Didn't think so. When you come up with a better explanation, you can call me. 'Til then, I got a job to do.' 

Kate's thoughts fell silent as Rath tuned out. Vash was in jail, Joseph was in Fondreake, Rath couldn't have done it . . . Then . . . who?

Meryl pushed her way through the crowd, Milly following behind her. Meryl stopped, watching the sheriff and two other men checking out the scene. A small, green truck, sloped on one side due to two flat tires, had been reported to be standing idle and blocking the flow of supplies from Little Jersey from getting into the main part of the city. near its tires was an elaborately dressed woman, dead, and a dumpy little man, who was also dead. Slumped over the back seat of the truck was another man, a younger man, who was still hanging on for life. 

The sheriff was trying to get him to speak, but he could only utter one word . . . "Wrath . . ." before coming to his demise. Meryl approached the sheriff, against the deputy's wishes.

"Sir, what's going on here?" 

"Mayor and his wife," he said gruffly. "And their nephew. Ain't no sign o' their son, whatever 'is name was." 

"So then it's a homicide and a kidnapping?"

"Uh huh."

"Nothing stolen? Missing?"

"Don't appear to be, but I don't really know." 

"And you're disappointed because you know it couldn't have been Vash the Stampede?"

"Yeah- huh?" Meryl sighed and turned away. Giving the report to Milly.

"And Mister. Vash didn't do it!" Milly said above the crowd, yelling it at the sheriff. "Mister Vash the Stampede is innocent ad has been ever since he blew up July!"

"Milly, calm down!" Meryl said quietly, bringing Milly's fist down from where she had been shaking it in the air. People stared as they edged their way back through the crowd to go back to the jail house to speak to Vash. They approached his cell and he began to whisper, frightened.

"I felt it . . ." he said, his voice barely audible. His voice shook, beads of sweat dropping to his palm as he stared down at his hands. "I could feel it . . . I CAN feel it . . . There's more of Them here . . ."


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: No, I do not own Trigun or any of the following characters, except for the ones who aren't in the series ^_^ Enjoy.

Chapter 6. Victim

"Vash," Meryl whispered, worried. "Are . . . Are you all right?" Vash didn't answer. His eyes had grown wide and his hands were trembling as he stared down at them. 

"M-Meryl?" Milly whimpered, sounding even more worried than Meryl had. 

"What?" Meryl said, looking at Milly. Milly had begun to tug lightly on the shorter woman's sleeve and pointing to the ground. "Do you . . . feel that?" Meryl looked down.

"Just a small tremor-" Meryl was cut short as something was belted into the back wall, in the cell next to Vash's, blowing stone and rock everywhere. Vash, his bars being blown apart, had dove forward, pushing the two former insurance girls to the ground to at least attempt to shield them from the shower of rocks. 

Vash stood and pulled the two girls to their feet and rushed them through the enormous hole in the cell wall. As they ran, Meryl caught up with Vash and said, "Vash, what are we doing?" 

"We're getting Kate and getting out of here," he replied. He reached for his gun at his side and realized it wasn't there. He didn't stop or hesitate to return for it. Kate quickly caught up with them, as she was near the sheriff's place at the time, and they had soon made their way to the southern side of the caves (away from town) before they stopped. 

Meryl and Milly collapsed on the sand, leaning against the rock and basking in its cool shade, however temporary their stay was. Vash spent his time peeking around the rock to look at the city. Kate watched Vash.

How gullible, she thought to herself, then opened her brain waves to begin another telepathic link with Vash.

'Forget something?' Vash tensed his shoulders.

'It was you.'

'Took you long enough. Not all Plants have an angel arm, you know . . . only a select few . . . actually, on Gunsmoke, only two. But Knives aided me so I had just enough power . . .'

'That's cheating.'

'What would you know? Look, I'm here on a secret mission, but right now I'm trying to keep your ass from getting killed. You may think it's impossible for a Plant to die . . . God knows Cal did, and look what happened to him . . . but you can die, Vash, and you will . . . when Knives is through with you.'

'What link do you share with my brother?'

'None of your business . . . right now. Just turn around and take your gun before I give it back to your brother.' Vash turned, Kate holding out the large, silver weapon. Vash took it, not taking his eyes off Kate, and returned it safely to his holster. 

'Why does Knives do this? Why go through all this trouble just to get to me instead of giving me a direct confrontation?'

'Good lord, Vash, I thought you were smarter than this! He's trying to make Them suffer . . . for everything they've done . . . to him . . . to me . . . to Joseph . . . and to you, Vash. He's doing this for you. They'll die, all of them, even these two twits sitting by that rock . . . And he's doing it all for us.'

'But he wants to kill me . . .'

'That's none of my business or yours. I trust you shouldn't worry about it. Now come on. We've got work to do.' 

Kate turned and began walking away from the rock. As her cloak and long, blonde hair was whipped out behind her, Vash spotting her brown holster, carrying his own gun's twin . . . his twin's gun . . . Knives's Angel Arm . . . 

'And you did as you were told?'

'Yes, sir.'

'Yet you saved him?'

'Sir . . . I knew you wanted your chance at him, to harness the power of both angel arms . . . I couldn't just let him die and suffer there because of Rath's idiocies. Please forgive me.'

Kate expected to feel the power clench itself around her mind, like an angry migrain, but none came. She could see in her mind Knives sitting with his legs crossed, his hands clenched tightly over the end arms of his throne, holding back what anger he was hiding.

'And you still have it?'

'Yes, sir.' 

'Good. Contact Rath and tell him to follow you to Inepril. Also, contact Joseph and tell him to start with the plans. Kate . . . Just go.'

"Damn it. I take it Kate messed up," Rath said, lowering his binoculars. They stood on top of a small mountain, weathered down by sand and wind, and were looking down at the small group of people. Behind Rath stood Joseph, trying to come in contact with either of the other two Plants. "You get anything yet?" 

"I think I've got something from Kate, but not from Cal . . . hold on." Joseph tried as best as he could to come into contact with Kate, who was walking little more than a half ile away. 'Kate, come in.' 

"Reception" was a little fuzzy. Joseph hadn't had to use his telepathic abilities in a while and had grown a little rusty over the past fifty years. They were also a little farther away than they usually had to be without using two other Plants to communicate.

'Yeah, I'm here, what do you want?'

'I've contacted Knives-'

'So have I.'

'Then you know what you're supposed to do?'

'Yep.'

'Well . . . I might be a little delayed in getting to Fondreake.' Rath was looking down at then through his binoculars again, and Kate had stopped dead and turned to look up at the tiny little dots on top of the mountain.

'Knives is gonna be pissed when he finds out about it.'

'Yeah, probably . . . Can't you take it slow or postpone your arrival or something?'

'I'll try to stall but I don't know how long I could keep it up.'

'That's good enough. It's still about 175 iles to Fondreake, but there's another broken down Plant about 80 iles away from here. Maybe you could check it out. That might buy a little more time.'

Kate sighed openly. 'As I said, I'll try my best, but don't expect too much.' Kate caught up to the other three and continued her trek toward this broken down Plant. Joseph began to move to the east . . . straight for Carcasses. 

The small group of people had stopped for a break around a large sand dune surrounded by loads of boulders. The shade was relieving to the two former insurance girls, but Vash seemed not to care. Kate seemed to be standing in the same spot nearly the whole thirty minutes they were there, staring out towards the west; the suns had already begun to set. 

"Better get moving," Kate said, turning and walking the direction of the broken-down Plant Joseph had given her directions to go to.

"What? So soon? Can't we stop to make camp?" Milly pleaded.

"Noooo, that would take longer to get to the next town. Just come on, it's not but another . . ." Vash put a hand on Kate's shoulder. 

"It would probably be easier for all of us if we waited for a sandsteamer," he said. As much as she hated to admit it, Kate was tired. She was, however, willing to keep traveling if it meant staying off a sandsteamer. It might take too long to get to the town if they got on a sandsteamer, and if they did get on there they'd be able to skip the Plant and go straight to the town, but that still might delay their plans and that would only piss Knives off much more than he was already and would be when he found out about Joseph's tiny change in plans.

But she was just . . . tired.

"Fine," she sighed. "The sandsteamer it is . . ."

"Joseph, what are we doing?" Rath said, tired. He had leaned back in the top-less jeep with his feet on the dashboard as Joseph drove through the desert.

"We just have to take a little stop, that's all."

"What for? We're supposed to be headed the other way."

"I told Kate to stall, don't worry about it . . . I've covered it. Just be patient with me, okay?" Rath sighed.

"Yeah, sure, whatever, just make it snappy, please? I'm trying to avoid Knives's bad side at the moment . . . killing those people back there kinda . . . you know, pissed him off . . ."

"To put it lightly," Joseph joked. Rath chuckled.

"Yeah, actually, that is kind of light on the subject." Rath wasn't a very big person. Being about the same age as Vash and Knives and the other six Plants, he looked similar to Zazzie . . . small, like a child, blonde, a round, boyish face. He was about five feet tall, give or take an inch or three. 

Joseph, on the other hand, was much taller, about five feet and eleven inches. He had darker hair, very bright blue eyes, and was in love with none other than Meryl Stryfe . . . which was pretty much the main reason why he was doing this. 

"Who is Meryl Stryfe?" Rath asked suddenly.

"What? I thought you couldn't-!"

"I'm new at this, but that doesn't mean I'm completely unable. I can still pick up some little thoughts."

"Meryl Stryfe is just . . . someone, that's all, but- hey! Why were you pickin' through my brain anyway?!"

"That thought just seemed to be in the air, that's all."

"Yeah, well, keep your wavelengths outta my brain, got it?" Rath chuckled again.

"Yeah, okay." They continued into the desert silently. 

*Remember, words with ' ' around them are thoughts*

Kate couldn't hear a sandsteamer anywhere near, and had lost hope for it. She figured they'd end up falling asleep and then the sandsteamer would pass. But she knew that behind her Vash was watching for it. 

"I think there's a station somewhere over there," Milly said after about an hour of sitting around. 

"Yeah, I think you're right, Milly. Think we should go over that way?"

"Yes," Kate said at once. "Let's go." Without another word they were off, but only because Kate had started so suddenly. 

"Hey, now, slow down," Vash whimpered. Kate did no such thing. She didn't even think twice on it, just kept going. They traveled only two more hours before they came upon a tiny town. It seemed to be nearly abandoned and Kate could since from here that her sister had died.

'It's dead.'

'Yes, I know,' Vash replied, standing beside her. Surely this wasn't the Plant that Joseph had been talking about? Kate thought about it no more before continuing into the city. The station was, fortunately, only a few blocks away from the entrance that they had come through. They arrived at the sandsteamer station just in time before the sandsteamer was heard in the distance. They waited eagerly for the mass of metal to stop in front of their large platform . . . and Kate noticed that only two other people were boarding.

Author's Notes: THANK YOU TO NO ONE! I really feel loved now *sniffle* no reviews for chappy 5. Tisk tisk. Am I not good enough for you people?! Just kidding ^_^ 

I play clarinet in our school band and I found the term Legato when I was writing punishment work for the director because I was talking (of course) and the punishment work was fifty lines of terms (and I had to write them five times each, the bizzitch . . . but anyway, Legato means play as smoothly as possible. ^_^ I thought it was funny.

And NO, Joseph and Meryl will not get together in this fic. I don't DO that with OC's. It's just wrong. J/k. But there will be some weird twists, more tragedies, tragic deaths, etc., so prepare for bloodshed! And even by . . . someone very un-expectant o.O


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own Trigun or any of the characters from the series, just Kate, Joseph, Rath, Cal, my surprises (including new species!), and my silly little plot. Have fun.

Note: The conversation at the beginning has a purpose, I promise!

Chapter 7. Sandsteamer

"You know, Milly . . . I've got to get you a hobby," Meryl said to her partner, slightly exasperated. Milly didn't reply. She had already pulled off her shoes and was climbing into the bed. Of course, only moments before, she had been bouncing back and forth from her room to Vash's. 

Kate, Milly, and Meryl would share a room, although, unfortunately, it only held two beds. Vash would have his own. 

Meryl took off her own shoes, her earrings, and her coat and climbed into the bed herself. They had decided that since she and Kate were considerably smaller than Milly, they would share a bed and Milly would keep the other one to herself. Milly, of course, had no objections. 

"I'll be right back," Kate stated before walking from the room. Vash's door was only four down and across the hall. Kate stood in front of it, then slowly brought her hand up and knocked. There was a hurried motion and then a low, "Come in," before she turned the knob and opened the door. Vash stood in front of the window, a towel draped across his bare shoulders and another wrapped around his thin waist. 

"God, Vash!" Kate said, looking in the other direction and turning red in the cheeks. "You coulda done better than that!" Vash chuckled.

"Yeah, well, you kinda came at a bad time."

"I just . . . needed to talk to you . . . about Knives." Vash stopped his trek to the table and watched as Kate walked slowly to the couch and plopped herself down. Vash grabbed his beer and sat in a chair. 

"What about him?" questioned Vash calmly. 

"I want to know about him . . . why he is the way he is . . . how he came to be that way . . . not that I disagree with his thoughts of genocide on human kind, just . . . why? How?"

"You mean . . . you allowed yourself to be employed by him but you know nothing about him?"

"Yes," Kate replied, her whisper barely audible. Vash sighed. Where to begin . . .

"We were on a ship, called Seeds. I suppose I'll start there, considering that's to where I can remember . . . Well, Knives and I are twins, as you know, and we were born on one of the Seeds ships before we came to this planet. There were thousands of Seeds ships, each carrying thousands of sleeping people.

"We grew abnormally fast and . . . some of the humans treated us differently because of our abilities and superiority to them. Some got jealous, and . . . well, beat us." Vash paused to see Kate's reaction. He wasn't entirely comfortable with talking about his past like this, but as she was a sister, he supposed she had a right to know. 

"Knives got angry at one in particular who seemed more prone to abusing us than the other humans who were awake on Seeds. Knives . . . became unstable. He killed the captain of the ship, and another man. In the end, five of the Crew died . . . including Rem."

"Rem?"

"Yes . . . Rem. She took care of us for that short period. She saw us as equals and appreciated the fact that we could do all these things. She didn't care. When Knives decided that all humans were alike, self-centered and selfish, he sent the Seeds ship on a different course, planning for the ship to go right by Gunsmoke. He knew I was . . . attached to Rem, so he spared her, but she gave herself up for us and went to rectify Knives's mistake so she could save the rest of human kind. She . . . died."

"And since then Knives has been against the humans, since you both were beaten as children?" Vash nodded. Kate stood and turned to walk from Vash's room. "That's all I wanted. And if you want to know . . . I know how you and your brother feel, but I do not carry with me your ways of love and peace. I still agree with Knives." Vash gave a faint smile and watched Kate walk from the room. 

Kate stood out in the hall, staring down at the floor. It was . . . frightening, the sandsteamer was. She hated sandsteamers, ever since her ordeal had happened ninety-eight years ago . . . 

The walls of the sandsteamer were dimly lit, most of the lanterns on the walls being extinguished hours ago. The small girl found them frightening, being alone in the dark. She looked left and right for the dining room door, or the door leading to the deck, her blonde curls bouncing as she walked. 

"Mama?" she called as she approached the stairs. "Daddy?" 

"Something wrong, little girl?" said a female voice to her left. She turned to look up at an elegantly dressed woman. 

"I can't find my mommy or daddy," she whimpered. "I fell asleep and when I woke up they weren't there anymore."

"Have you gone on the deck yet? Or in the dining hall?" The child shook her head. "Well, I'll escort you." The woman took the girl's hand and began to walk, taking her up the stairs. "So, what's your name?"

"Katheryn, but my mommy and daddy call me Kate."

"Oh, well hello, Kate. My name is Caroline, but my friends call me Carol. Here we go. Here's the dining hall. Do you see your mommy and daddy?" The child stood on her tip-toes to look around the crowd below her but stood straight again with a disappointed look on her face. 

"No. They aren't here."

"Well, they must be on the deck then. Let's go see." When they emerged from the double doors onto the deck of the refurbished sandsteamer Caroline led Kate to a chair and allowed her to stand in it to see over the small mass of people. She stepped down after another few minutes. She silently left the deck and went back down into the first class floor. Carol followed. 

Kate opened the door to their room that she had left unlocked. Her parents still weren't there. She sat on the bed and buried her face in her tiny hands. Carol stood in the doorway.

"They've left," she sobbed quietly. "I knew they would- sniff- it was only a matter of time."

"What are you talking about?" asked Carol. Kate took her head from her hands and looked at the older woman. 

"This is the third family I've had, and each have left me because of what I was. Well . . . no more! I'm tired of having to scrounge for a new pair of humans!" The girl screamed as loudly as she could, Carol backing out of the room.

"Y-your a monster . . . You're a monster!" Carol ran as fast as her feet would allow, tripping every few steps because of her high heels. Behind her, the girl was still screaming. Then the floor beneath her began to shake violently. Carol shouted in fright and climbed the stairs. She came back onto the deck and shouted, "It's a monster! A monster!" 

An explosion blasted below the deck, sending people flying off the sandsteamer. Soon, there was nothing left. After only thirty minutes, the entire sandsteamer had been stopped in its tracks and reduced to nothing but a pile of dead bodies, smoldering ashes, charred furniture, and a twisted ton of metal and steel. Standing on the cliff above the wreckage was a small girl, looking down at the pit of hell from her safe perch. She grunted, turned, and walked away. 

In the middle of the next afternoon the sandsteamer was passing smoothly through the desert, still almost seventy iles away from a town, when it came to a sudden stop. Meryl and Milly raced out on deck, where others were beginning to gather, but Kate and Vash were already at the gate. 

"Vash, what's going on?" Meryl asked above the shouts of the crowd behind her. Vash didn't reply. He only turned around and began to head up the metal stairs to the captain's quarters. Kate followed. 

Kate's POV

We headed up the creaky, metal stairs. I was only following Vash as my duty. I had told Knives I would keep an eye on him until we reached Fondreake, so that was what I was going to do. 

Vash knocked lightly on the door and then opened it. When he saw the captain and a rich, married passenger (judging by the ring on her finger) having a little make-out session he began to turned, but I pushed past him, grabbed the arrogant little captain (who looked like he was in his twenties) by his collar, and slammed him against the wall.

"Why have we stopped?" I barked. I really wanted to keep the sandsteamer moving, trying not to stall the plan any further than it already had been.

"How am I s'posed tuh know?! I'm only the captain, for God's sake!" I tightened my grip on his ugly green collar and dragged him with me out the door. I could hear Vash following me now. I pushed the man in front of my when we got to the foot of the stairs, and people laughed as he was forced to walk with his fly un-zipped and his shirt unbuttoned. I pushed him down to the very bottom floor where the workers were. We got into the boiler room and pushed him in.

"W-why did we stop?" he asked, trembling, when he felt the gun in his back. But then I noticed . . . every single one of the workers was frozen . . . not moving, like stone statues or ice sculptures. 

I then saw a winged figure come soaring down from the larger pipes near the ceiling of the workers' floor, charging right at us. The cowardly captain dove, but I moved out of the way as Vash leaped backwards and the figure went crashing to the ground, having missed his target. He obviously wasn't too skilled at flying.

"Holy shit, Cal, you scared the ever-livin' crap outta me!" I shouted, lowering my gun from the boyish figure. His red hair stuck up in odd places, and he certainly did look young. 

"Sorry 'bout that . . . Haven't been flyin' in a while."

"Yeah, since Knives kicked your ass. I figured you were dead by now."

"What, you aren't glad to see me?"

"Well . . . Let's just say I didn't miss you."

"At least I've still got my wings!" the young Plant burst suddenly. I turned swiftly and bore down on him.

"At least I'm not some mechanically re-engineered, mechanically reproduced freak! And the loss of my feathers is none of your business!" I screeched. I stalked from the room, my fingers clenched tightly around my gun. I kicked open the door and walked through. I'm sure they could hear my screaming until I arrived back at the deck. Still . . . I wanted to know why we had stopped.

3rd

It was almost three more hours before they began to move again. Vash had gone back to his room to sleep while Meryl and Milly had gotten some food. Kate was sitting on the south end of the wooden deck, watching the sand trail behind them as the sandsteamer went forward again. She was still watching the sand topple back to the ground like waves in the ocean when Cal came to sit behind her.

"If you really wanted to know, I broke two of the six generators when I was trying to sprout my wings."

"And those workers?"

"None of my doing."

"Are they . . . back to normal?"

"Actually, no . . . Vash and I were monitoring that, and the captain had to get the second shift to come in early and work the sandsteamer's controls until they could find a way to revive everyone else."

"Ah . . . who do you think it was?"

"I dunno. Knives isn't here, Rath and Joseph are in Fondreake . . . Vash wouldn't have done it . . . you didn't . . . and the only other thing with that kind of power is Rei, but she's kind of . . . heh heh heh . . . in a coma."

Kate looked at Cal. "What do you mean, 'in a coma' ?"

"I mean she's in a comatose state! Not awake, knocked out, asleep for an abnormally large amount of time-"

"When did this happen?"

"Uh . . . year, year and a half ago?"

"How come I wasn't informed of this?"

"Well . . . heh heh, you see, funny thing about that . . ."

"Cal! Tell me, you sideshow freak!"

"Well . . . Knives, you see . . . he said she was useless to him since she was in that state and he, well, wanted to ditch her, and he didn't say anything. He figured you would have wanted to go back and see him about it, and while you were still undercover, he decided it wouldn't be such a great idea."

"Well . . . Now I want to go see her! Did he ditch her after all?"

"No . . . she's still there, in the church, but you can't go back until you get to Fondreake, after Vash is in jail and those two dummies your brought along with you are more or less dead and/or disposed of." Kate turned from Cal and continued watching the rolling mounds of sand and dust trailing behind the sandsteamer. She then sighed and stood.

"We're almost there."

Author's Notes: Tee hee hee ^_^ Everything here had a purpose, I promise! Review, please! I'm having a definite lack of those things lately . . . hm . . .


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Yeah, and yadda yadda yadda. 

Note: OKAY! Morlana, my faithful reviewer, despite the fact that I have written a few one shots with Milly and Meryl . . . I'm not too sure about how I write them . . . In character, out of character . . . Okay, to quit fooling myself, I think I suck at writing stuff with Milly and/or Meryl. It ends up depressive . . . But I'll try ^_^

Onwards!

Chapter 8. Fondreake

The whistle of the sandsteamer blew loudly as it prepared to leave the station. Very few people had gotten off the sandsteamer, so the platform wasn't crowded when the small group left off.

Even though Meryl and Milly didn't know who in hell this little man was that had suddenly started traveling with them, they said nothing and silently agreed to allow him to trek with them through the city, but only because Vash had convinced Meryl.

Still sensitive to the fact that the man who had attacked December was still after her, Meryl wasn't very comfortable with other people traveling with them ("It's really no one's business!" Meryl had snapped at Vash.). Kate saw to it, however, that a very strict eye was kept on the smaller Plant ("No telling what kind of perverted stunts that thing might pull," Kate had explained when was questioned about 'stalking' the little man.). 

But then there was, of course, the possibility that his wings could suddenly burst from his shoulders and he could go around Fondreake killing people, just to piss Knives off. "But Vash would probably knock his ass off the planet," was Kate's first thought after she stopped pondering the risks of having Cal with them. 

"I'll catch up with you guys later," Kate said immediately after she stepped off the station platform. 

"Where are you going?" Meryl asked as she, too, stepped out of the station.

"Just . . . around. I'll be back." No more said, Kate set off to the right of the station and into an alley. The Plant was this way, and she was supposed to meet Joseph and Rath somewhere around that area to discuss their plan, since they had been delayed even longer. She had gone more than two blocks before she noticed Cal was following her.

She turned swiftly, collaring the tiny man and slamming him to the wall.

"What are you doing?" she said calmly.

"I'm a Plant too, you know, even if I was created differently. I have a right to know what you are doing, as a Plant-"

"Cal, this is none of your business. This is between Rath, Joseph, Knives, and me. Butt out."

"Go easy on the guy, he ain't doin' nothin'." Kate looked down to her right and saw two figures standing in the exit of the alley. Joseph and Rath. She dropped Cal and walked to meet with her partners . 

"Mister Vash, where d'you suppose Kate went?" Milly questioned as she munched on a sandwich.

"Dunno," Vash answered absently. Meryl watched as he leaned back on the bench and sighed. They were sitting just outside of the empty station. Milly had bought herself a sandwich from a vendor somewhere while Meryl and Vash just sat and waited for Kate's return. They waited . . . and waited. And, well, they waited some more. 

Vash got tired of waiting, so he stood and began to walk across the street to the small restaurant. Inside, there weren't any customers, but a small girl was clearing a table in the far corner. A man stood behind the counter, obviously bored, and a woman, who Vash supposed was his wife, was sitting on a stool across from him. When she saw Vash enter, she immediately jumped to greet him.

Kate's POV

"Oh, Kate! Where have you been?" Meryl's look of shock turned to anger. It was near dawn, now, and I had been out since sundown. I knew what had gone on in my absence, but I had to act innocent.

"Meryl . . . what are you doing at the sheriff's place? And . . . wait, where's Vash?"

"VASH, is in JAIL," she said, turning back to the large building. I noticed she emphasized 'Vash' and 'jail', as though she were irritated, like this happened so often she was sick of it. Wait . . . that was probably true.

"What happened?!" I tried my best to sound surprised. 

"Long story," Meryl sighed as she walked in the main office area and sat down in the empty lobby. "You see-"

"Mistervashwasaccusedofmurderagain!" Milly shouted in rage beside Meryl. "Itssounfairthataguylikevashshouldgetpinnedlikethis!" 

"Milly! CALM DOWN!" Meryl shouted above Milly's extensive ranting and raving. 

"Oh. I'm sorry. I hope I didn't disturb anyone," said Milly, as though all she had done was sing a wrong tune. "Vash was accused of killing a man in a restaurant-" I didn't let her finish. I turned away from them and began toward the cell block, against the sheriff's wishes. I stood in front of Vash's cell, looking in on him. 

'Gee, Vash,' I said telepathically. 'Now that you're in jail the city's kinda vulnerable. I hope nothing -bad- happens.' I put an emphasis on 'bad', hoping he'd get the hint. 

'You wouldn't-'

'Oh, but I would.' My sing-song thoughts got suddenly firm. 'You know I would. This world is so imperfect. If only I had realized it before I lost my third pair of humans, this wouldn't even be happening. Humans wouldn't be here. I would have sought Knives out and we would have killed the humans together, while I still had my wings. If only Knives hadn't been so kind to you . . . he should have killed that damn woman, that Rem . . .'

'Rem?'

'Yes. Knives told me all about your pathetic attachment to her . . . He told me you even cried over her . . . And how he hated her, how he cursed her for saving those humans. It's all that little wretch's fault, you know . . . she rectified Knives "mistake", she turned it around . . . Such an imperfect human-'

'But in all . . . Rem was right, Kate . . . She was human, humans are supposed to make mistakes, they're supposed to be imperfect-'

'But Vash, we are Plants, and we -are- perfect! We are superior to them, and they do not deserve to live for what they've done, for how they've treated us . . . and that is why we are starting with Fondreake . . . the Sandsteamer City . . . Start big, as a warning . . . and you're too spineless to break out of jail and stop us . . .' I turned, leaving Vash to his own thoughts; hopefully, ones of realization.

I walked from the near- empty building and started a trek across the rather large city. The Plant was completely on the opposite side of the city that I had just started from, but hopefully it wouldn't take too long.

"Wow, Rem . . . How do you know so much about everything?" Rem giggled.

"Well, I don't know very much about everything, just a little bit of some things, little things, simple things." She smiled as the younger boy beside her. "But I'm flattered you think that way of me."

"How do you know what you do, then?"

"I was taught many things back on earth, and that's how come I know the things here, like right now in the recreation room. I could plant a flower seed and it will start to grow."

"Then . . . How come you accept us?"

"What do you mean like that?"

"I mean . . . Knives and me. No one else seems to understand us, or like us, but you do, don't you Rem?"

"Of course I do, silly! You're too cute not to like." She giggled again, but stopped as she saw the boy's sad face. "I believe in giving people chances, even if they are . . . a little different than us. But, you know, everyone's different, Vash. Even though you and Knives are twins, you're still very different from each other."

"I know that, Rem, but-"

"Don't be so sad about things like that. Soon, people will realize what a help you and Knives are, and they'll begin to appreciate your skills. We have really benifitted from having you on board our ship."

"You really think so, Rem?"

"I know so. You just . . . need to be able to rely on people and have some faith. I know the others will come around soon." 

Vash looked up through the bars. Meryl had been standing there for a few minutes, but he hadn't taken the time to acknowledge her presence. 

"Can I . . . ask you something?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Do you . . . care that I am a Plant?" Meryl looked shocked and taken aback as she heard his question. He had never spoken to her about being what he was, a Plant, and had never really had to think about this.

"I- uh . . . um . . . I suppose I don't mind, although . . . I do have to admit it is a little awkward, strange, at times, but . . . I don't really know, I haven't thought about this . . ." Vash gave a faint smile.

"Then . . . do you suppose you would care if there were others just like me roaming around the planet?"

"Are you talking about Knives?"

"No . . . I'm talking about others . . . seemingly ordinary people. I guess you wouldn't have thought about it . . ."

"What is this about?" 

"Oh . . . nothing . . . just a random thought."

It had been more than two days proceeding Kate's telepathic outbursts with Vash. It was then that they decided to take action.

It was after midnight, and luckily there was no moon showing. The night sky was cloudy, small forks of lightning lighting up like light bulbs in the distance and the roar of thunder, like a thousand bulls running over the sand dunes. Kate thought this was a perfect night to begin- no moon, stormy . . . 

A swift figure, cloaked in shadows, she made her way to the Plant again. Only two days ago she had come to check out the design, as it had been recently repaired, and mapped out the plan to stop it. She neared the entrance door and saw two others there waiting for her: Rath and Cal.

"Where's Joseph?"

"Dunno."

"Oh well. We can do this without him." She entered the narrow door and immediately sat down to work.

"Hey," Cal said after only a few moments of re-wiring some contraption he had brought with him. "Is it . . . raining?"

Kate was silent before answering, "Yeah, so it is."

"I thought it didn't rain on Gunsmoke?"

"Well, really only here in Fondreake. Fondreake was built on a huge geo-plant, which is basically artificially grown grass. I think they would have called in an oasis or something on earth."

"Oh . . . well, that explains the trees, but will that effect the Plant? I mean, it's brand new!"

"Why would we care? We're just going to disable it anyway."

"Oh . . . yeah, right, forgot." Cal was silent for another few minutes, until Rath announced he was finished on his section. Kate and Cal stood to watch him begin to pull the "plug" (he had set up a case of explosives) when Call interrupted, "Hey, you hear that?"

"Cal! It's probably just the rain."

"No . . . it's something else." He turned and edged his way out of the door until he could see the very top base holding up the Plant. "Something was up there," he said as Kate and Rath came to stand beside him. They stared up at it, all three of them soaking wet. "I'm gonna go check it out."

"Cal, don't go up there!" Cal ignored Kate and began to climb the back support keeping the Plant on the ground. Kate watched as her smaller partner climbed, but as he finally stood with his feet on the top of the Plant, the rounded surface reflecting his image down, something flew at him. Kate cried out as Cal went tumbling down and he and the assailant went rolling to the other side of the Plant. 

Kate began to climb as well, Rath behind her. Kate ran to the two men and cried out loudly again as Cal was given a fist to the left temple, and was then hit over the side of the Plant. "Cal!" she screamed, diving for the edge and watching in horror as her partner hit the ground one hundred feet below her.

"Kate, why do you have to be so mean all the time?"

"I'm not mean."

"Yes, you are. Cal isn't near as old as you are and you're treating him like he's your speck of dirt! Your slave!"

"Well . . . I sold my land, so you can have him now." Rath sighed, exasperated, at Kate's sarcastic words. "You don't get it, do you? Don't you give a damn about him? He's your brother!"

"He's not my brother. He's a freak, in which case he may be kin to -you- but not me."

"Just because you were created differently?"

"Exactly." 

She turned, tears stinging her eyes, searching for the bastard who had attacked, but he had gone. Rath was staring in shock as Kate slammed her fist down on the smooth surface several times, cracking the glass. 

"Damn it," she said weakly, a sob escaping her lips. "I told him not to . . . I . . . I told him . . ." 

"Kate it wasn't your fault." The rain was pounding down on top of them like bullets, heavy metal bullets loaded with lead. When she saw Cal go over the edge, his screams and cries of help not even heard over the fierce torrent of rain, one of those bullets had torn through Kate's very soul. Even though she had been mean to him for most of the time she knew him, she still cared for him, even though . . . even though he was different, his was still a Plant, and he was still her brother . . .

An explosion sounded on the other side of the city, and looking up, they saw nothing but black smoke and flames rising into the air. Rath grabbed Kate around the waist and jumped, his large, black wings bursting from his shoulder blades. 

"No," Kate whined, looking back at the ground. "No, Rath, stop it, take me back . . . Please, take me back . . ."

"No, Kate, don't you realize where that blast came from?"

"Take me back," Kate continued. "What about him? What about Cal-?"

"Kate! He's dead! There's nothing we can do about that now! Going back there now would only make things worse for yourself and me!" Kate began to cry openly now, tears flowing rapidly down her red cheeks. Unknown to them both . . . what was to come in the near future was nothing compared to Death . . .

Author's Notes: I planned on this chapter being a lot longer, but I had a change in plans . . . and some things here are very different from the series, but bear with me ^_^ I think you're gonna be surprised with the next chapter . . . and I can -promise- that it'll be a lot longer than this one . . . okay, r/r!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own Trigun or the characters; Rath, Kate, Joseph, the Mysterious New Guy Who Looks Oddly Like Wolfwood but Isn't, and the plot are mine. 

Chapter 9. Him

"Meryl!"

"Milly, hold on, I'll be there in a second!" Meryl shouted at her partner in frustration. Something had exploded just near the town jail and had blown the building to pieces. When Meryl picked herself up from the mess of rubble, she found that the buildings around her had been blown away as well, and lay in tiny pieces of gravel around the area. 

A tall form picked itself only a few yards away from Meryl, and through the darkness she made the figure out to be Vash. 

"Vash!" she called, making her way to him. He turned to her but said nothing. 

"Meryl!" came a whimper. Meryl looked over her shoulder at Milly, who was running to up to them. "Meryl, I'm scared . . . what happened?"

"Angel arm," were the only two words Vash could choke out. 'Why now? Knives . . . why not just me?' 

"Rath, take me back! Take me back now!" A voice carried over to them, and the three turned, looking up at the sky. Another figure, swallowed in the depths of shadow and pelted with the rain, came soaring over the tops of the remaining buildings. Milly and Meryl watched in amazement as a young man, holding tight around Kate's waste, came to a rough landing nearby. 

"Kate, would you stop?! You're acting like a child!"

"Take me back! Cal was only a child!"

"He's dead, Kate, there's nothin' else you can do for him!" This boy, who seemed to know Kate, as he was was on first-name terms with her, had huge, pearly white wings. He flexed them, trying to get comfortable with them, as he leaned up from kneeling over her. 

"Kate . . ." Meryl said, stepping forward. Vash stopped her with a hand on the shoulder and proceeded forth himself. He stood above her, not moving, yet inside his mind his workings were going nuts.

'Kate, what happened?'

'Cal . . . he . . . he's dead, Vash . . . He's dead . . .' Kate jumped and hugged Vash around the waste. 'I told him not to go up there . . . I told him to stop, Vash, and he didn't listen. The man pushed him and he . . . and he . . .'

'Where? Where were you?'

'On top of the Plant.' Kate seemed to have either forgotten or didn't seem to care that she was telling Vash things she shouldn't be hearing about their plans. 'He heard something, and he climbed up to see. I told him it- it wasn't safe but he di- didn't listen to me. He was knocked off the Plant, Vash, and there was nothing I could do!' She burst into a heavy wave of tears, her head pounding, sending out violent brain waves. 

Vash did the only thing he could think of to comfort his fellow Plant, and that was to wrap his arms around her and bring her into a tight hug. "Kate, I'm sorry . . . This wasn't supposed to happen . . ." Meryl, of course, didn't know what was going on. She still hadn't gotten over the shock of seeing the young boy with wings. 

As she stared at him, his eyes widened and he turned, looking away from them. He walked away a few steps, then, after only a moment, he came back. Kate turned to him, Vash loosening his arms slightly. 

"Rath," Kate sniffled.

"It's . . . it's Knives . . . he's angry . . . We need to go, now." Kate tore herself away from Vash, though rather reluctantly, and stood beside Rath. She looked back at Vash, her eyes boring into his.

'It's . . . not my fault, you know . . .' was the only thing that was said in the link between them before they took off. 

"W-what was . . . that?" Meryl said. Vash smiled faintly and turned. 

"That was my brother." Meryl stared after him, then ran to catch up.

"What the hell was that supposed to mean?!"

"He's my brother. Plain and simple, just as Kate was my sister. Plants. They're Plants." Meryl didn't say anything for a few minutes, and then continued.

"Vash, I don't understand. Kate . . . is a Plant? But why wouldn't she tell me? And . . . what's going on? You seem to know more about this than I do."

"Actually, no, I don't. There are still many things that I have yet to uncover. I didn't even know any Plants existed other than Knives and myself. And you still haven't told me what happened the first time December was attacked."

"But . . . Vash, he told me if I told anyone about it, he'd kill someone . . . I didn't want that to happen, and you would have just gotten involved-"

"You think that matters now?" Vash gave a small chuckle. "One of my own have died . . . and by Knives's own, twisted plans, no doubt. But I'm willing to accept that because what he was doing was wrong in the first place . . . I'm not saying that I don't care that my brethren have died, only that it was a risk I have to accept because if it hadn't have happened, even more innocent lives would have been lost . . . and I wouldn't be able to put that on my shoulders as well because I knew that he agreed with Knives's theories. One for a million, or a million for one. A lesser half was better." 

Without another word, Vash turned and continued to walk away from Meryl. Milly came up to stand next to Meryl and looked from her to Vash.

"What was the matter, Meryl?"

"A . . . a point of realization . . ."

"Rath," Kate whispered. "Rath, what'll he do? What will he do to us if . . . if . . ."

"I dunno," Rath replied honestly with a shrug of the shoulders. He hesitated before pushing against the two doors before them and admitted Kate her entrance. She stood in the doorway, looking up at Knives, who seemed angry enough. He was leaned over in his throne, an elbow on the arm of the chair and his head resting in his hand. When Kate entered and the door closed behind her, he stood and began to make his way down the stairs. She got on one knee with her head down, as was proper in his presence. 

His footprints reverberated around the hall, making them seem louder. She knew they were coming closer and he was standing in front of her when they stopped. She looked up, her eyes brimming with tears. She was still soaking and shivering from the cold rain, and her face turned, if possible, even more pale as she stared up at an infuriated Knives.

He walked around her, his hands behind his back. 

"Very disappointed," he said in a smooth voice.

"Sir-"

"Just like your predecessors."

"But, Sir! I can explain!" Something collided with the side of her head, sending her fully to the ground. She clutched her temple and looked back at Knives, failing to hold back her tears and cries of sorrow and pain. She finally broke down and cried again, loudly. Knives clutched her upper arm tightly in a steel-like grip and hoisted her up.

"Shut up," he demanded in an icy tone.

"No! He's dead! He's dead, Knives, and you don't give a shit! You couldn't care less what happens to us, you just want to get at your brother!" Knives practically threw her back to the ground. 

"True though it is, I wouldn't sully my flesh over something as meaningless as this."

"Then why?! Why waste your time?! You're stronger than Vash, why go through all the trouble?"

"It's not just about my brother, but about the rest of human kind."

"Well if I can't do it right then why can't you do it yourself?! You promised nothing would happen, but I know you planned for Cal's death, just like you're doing for us-!" Kate stopped as a gun was cocked back and she was staring straight up the barrel. 

"Out," Knives ordered. Kate stood and walked slowly to the door, pushing it open and leaving out. Rath stood there, staring at Knives, who only smirked and turned to take his seat back at his throne.

A figure formed from between the boiling hot geysers, the town several iles ahead only a pinprick to his eye. A cigarette was between his first two fingers on his right hand, smoking and half-used. He put it to his lips and inhaled, taking it away and waiting before blowing the smoke out and adding it to the steam from the geysers. He started forward again, the gun at his side making clinking noises as it hit against his sack of coins. As he set his eyes on the town, coming into better focused, he said aloud, "Victim two hundred and twenty-seven."

For some unknown reason, for the following two days Vash preferred sitting beside the remnants of the jail house, like some sign telling the people he was still there and wasn't going to move. Often times a small group of people would walk by and stare, or point, or gasp and run away in fear of getting their bodies blown apart . . . or something like that.

But for Meryl and Milly, they came by a few times to check up on him. He wouldn't speak. The only times he did was to say 'yes' , 'no' , or 'thank you' . 

In that short period of time, no one saw Kate around, or the winged boy. Vash knew what had happened to them. They were scared. Hell, he probably would be too. They were really only children, though, compared to him. And even though what they were doing was wrong, he still felt pity for them. He even came to wonder how and why they came to be with Knives. It couldn't have been hunger for power, Plants were already superior as it was. No. He knew what it was. A past, most likely abusive. A past where they lived with humans and put up with discrimination against their abilities, just like Knives and Vash had. 

Vash was still pondering this when a shadow fell across him. He looked up from the sands beneath him and into the face of a man. Besides the girls, this was the only person to come within three feet of him in the past forty-eight hours. 

"You're Vash the Stampede." Well, no need to state the obvious.

"Yes, I am."

"I just wanted to let you know that there was a shooting just outside of town that left twelve people dead." Oddly enough, this stranger had a twisted grin on his face. Vash jumped and ran, the man following behind at his own pace, with his hands thrust in his pockets and a smoking cigarette in his mouth (A/N: I KNOW what you are thinking ^_~). 

Just past the Plant, Vash spotted them. Twelve lifeless bodies, empty carcasses of their former selves . . . soul-less shells. . . okay, dead. They lay motionless at the base of the Plant. Not a single one was left alive. 

"Who-?"

"Me," came the short reply. Vash turned as the sound of a gun being cocked reached his ears. The man now stood with his left hand in his pocket and his right holding a gun. His malicious eyes were full of glee and his soft smile looked odd on him for this situation. He looked as if everything were perfectly normal. 

Vash put his hands up in defeat.

"You'll shoot me then?"

"Maybe."

"Well then . . . I request one thing."

"And what might that be?" 

"Tell me . . . why'd you do it?"

"Knives," came the reply, plain and simple. "I, too, work for your brother Knives. I knew you'd come running if you'd heard about a couple of meaningless corpses lyin' around, so I staged it out for you. God, from what I've heard about you bein' a real gung-ho gunslinger you sure are kinda girly about this."

Vash gave a faint smile. "Everything you've heard about me is wrong, my friend. July, the fifth moon . . . I can guarantee that everything that has reached your ears that has had anything to do with Vash the Stampede was either not true or incomplete."

"And what was that supposed to mean?"

"I don't go into the past. I prefer the future." Vash knew he was confusing the man. "Didn't my brother explain anything to you? I mean, we're only twins."

"I've heard enough about it. Just shut up and wait."

"Wait for-?" Suddenly there was yet another explosion, only this time . . . Vash knew it was definitely more devastating than the last. This was something else, not just a misguided angel arm . . . But Vash knew what it was after . . .

"Meryl!!"

Author's Notes: *sighs* seemed kinda toward the end of my story, didn't it? Well, with the introduction of my newest dude we got a looong ways to go ^_^ Next time!! --- '' "Human emotions are so easy to toy with," came the blonde man's remark as he watched the city below him crumble away. ''


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: And yet again, here we are. This is the part where I say some witty little disclaimer thing, but I'm fresh out, sorry. But for your annoyance . . . I don't own Trigun or any of the characters in association with the original series. I know you wish I did, but I don't. Enjoy.

Chapter 9. Tremble

It had been one of the first times he had spoken her name. She heard it echo through the hollow town, the streets completely devoid of life, save for Meryl. Startled at his voice crying out to her, she turned, but it was only too late to run. 

The bright light beamed above her and its warmth cascaded down upon her before it hit. She knew what it was, and she knew the damage it would probably do, but the comfortable warmth engulfed her, swallowing her body and forcing her into a tingling numbness. 

She only barely knew what was going on. The bright light prevented her from seeing, the extreme but comfortable warmth sending her body into a state of numbness. She didn't feel herself fall to the sand below her, only felt the rush of wind before she hit, and even when she did she felt nothing. 

But somewhere in the back of her mind there was that one sane voice asking, 'What's happening?' She herself didn't know it was there, and even if she did she couldn't have even begun to comprehend the correct answer . . .

"Sir . . . do you honestly think this was the right time to do this?"

"Humans' emotions are so easy to toy with," came the blonde man's reply as he watched the city below him crumble away. "Let me have my fun."

The wind forced the dark blue cloak to whip fiercely around Kate's tiny body. With one hand she kept her blonde curls from whipping her face and the other fist held the upper part of the cloak tightly around her chest. She and Rath were walking their way back to the Plant, as Rath's wings were useless against this harsh wind from an upcoming typhoon. 

Kate was several feet in front of her brother. Her tracks in the sand were blown away as quickly as they were formed, which came quite unfortunate for Rath, as he couldn't even see his sister's body through the sand. 

In coming across the Plant, Kate stopped. Of course, Cal's body would no longer be there, but she hadn't expected the Plant to be missing as well.

Vash pushed the man out of the way, his gun inadvertently going off. Vash only felt the tiny tingle in his shoulder when the bullet ripped through his flesh, but he kept on going. He had to get to Meryl . . . but why were they after her? Was it because she had told someone about the night December was attacked? Why would that matter now, though? After everything . . . that had happened since they had left . . .? It didn't make much sense . . . 

A very heavy wind had picked up just as the blast had hit the middle of the town. There was probably some stupid typhoon heading toward the city. Well, with Vash's luck there was. But he quit thinking about that. He had to get to Meryl . . .

Toward the middle of the city things were simply blown apart. It was like one really big mountain range now; piles of boulders from mountains on the outside of the city, debris from the buildings . . . And then he saw it: the man named Joseph. He cradled Meryl in his arms, making Vash run faster. Vash collared the Plant just as he had set Meryl back down again. Joseph's feet came several inches off of the ground, and needless to say for a few seconds he was scared to death. 

"What the hell did you do?!" Vash demanded furiously. He was obviously angered by this man.

"I didn't do anything!"

"Vash!" Vash turned his head to look over his shoulder. Kate and Rath were running through the wind. "Vash! The Plant! It's gone!" Vash moved his death glare from Kate's face to just above her head. Sure enough, the Plant was no long blocking the view from the fountain the in the middle of the town to the Mountains and Geyser Mile a distance out. 

He absently dropped Joseph and turned completely around to face the direction the Plant had once proudly stood on its base to protect Fondreake. He had only barely noticed when Kate had gone, "Vash, what happened to your shoulder?" He really noticed it when someone happened to touch him through the fabric of his coat.

"Just a . . . scratch," he replied before turning back to Joseph and a rather banged up Meryl. He picked up her tiny, limp form and began to walk away with her. "Come on. Let's go find Milly."

Her cries were coming out loud now, and she felt she couldn't- or shouldn't- stop herself. As much as she hated to admit it, she was hurt, and in more ways than one. 

Milly didn't know what had happened, only that something had blown up and she was no trapped in a hole, the walls being tons of steel, metal, stone, and rock. There was no way out, and even if there was, she couldn't have made it. 

She had been asleep when the blast had sounded. Meryl had told her she was going to the grocery store, and Milly had absently 'okay-ed' her and then dozed back off. A rumbling had disturbed her slumber, and then a bright light made her open her eyes, a warmth enclosed her body, and then everything went dark. Now, here she was, trapped inside of steel, metal, and stone walls, hurt both physically and emotionally, and there was no way out . . . whether her wounds would allow her to move or not.

A headache had been the result of crying and screaming at the top of her lungs. She had been calling for someone to help, for someone to do something, for she was no alone. No, there were three unconscious children in the entrapment with her. Them . . . and their dead parents. 

None of the young children woke when she cried, so she continued. She knew, in the back of her mind, that there was no one out there . . . not after the blast. Maybe hours, days even, there would be search parties looking for survivors of this terrible disaster, but she doubted that she- or the children- would last that long.

"He would know what to do," she said aloud. "Mr. Priest would be able to get us out of this." Then she began to cry again, until she heard the sound of moving rock. Someone above her was shifting the rubble and debris! Someone was there!

Milly quieted herself and waiting for the sun to shine through a tiny hole. A male voice told her to hold still for only a moment, and then the hole became larger . . . and larger . . . until the hole was big enough for even Milly to climb comfortably through.

"Here, give the children to me," he demanded. Milly, her face red from crying and cheeks streaked with tears, passed the small children up to him, and he finally hoisted her through the opening. Looking up to thank that man, she said,

"Mr. Vash!" then, realizing her mistake, corrected, "Oh . . . I'm sorry . . . You just-"

"Yes, I know . . . that would be because he is my brother. And I . . . am Knives."

Author's Notes: Yeah, I know, really short chapter. I didn't try very hard, so it's not actually, like, any V/M there, much to my imaginary friend's disappointment. Sorry Bill!! Sorry evil imaginary twin Bob!! By the way, for those of you who DON'T know, Evil Imaginary Twin Bob is the leader of a super-secret crime syndicate, along with my friend Emily! Their specialty is . . . um, bombs . . . ? 

I nearly got hit by a school bus today! We were walking back to the junior high from the football field after a very exciting but winning game (on our part ^_^ Go Vikes!) and this psycho bus driver decides not to yield or slow down. I hear this roar behind me, jump into the dirt (much to my humiliation) and the principal jumps in front of the bus (NOW it slows down) and starts screaming at him to stop before it hit my friends! BUSES SUCK! r/r!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with the original Trigun series *beats everyone with a stick* No!! Plushies are MINE!! *evil cackle . . . cough cough*

Chapter 11. (What, so soon?!) Control

"And I . . . am Knives."

The fear in Milly's eyes lit up instantly as he introduced himself. She knew who he was, unfortunately, and now she feared what was to come . . .

"Have you found her yet?"

"No, Vash . . . Milly is no where that we could find in the city. We looked through every pile of rubble, stone, and debris we could find! We did a body count as best we could and she wasn't among them either." 

Vash was silent. He had been treating Meryl's wounds while Kate, Rath, and Joseph went to search for Milly. 

"You guys rest then. Watch Meryl. I'm going out to have a look." 

"I'll come with you-" started Kate.

"No, you won't," Vash interjected firmly. The missing Plant was still on his mind at the moment, and the fact that it didn't blow up was more possible than any other explanation that could be given or thought of puzzled Vash even further (A/N: believe it or not, that sentence did make sense). If the Plant had been blown up, the base and support and everything else in Fondreake would have gone with it. If it had been a natural occurance and it blew out, then it would have only cracked and stopped working . . . not disappear altogether. 

Kate's POV

It kind of made me mad. After everything that had happened, Vash still thought of me as a nineteen-year-old girl, when really I was nearly one hundred years older. I was tough enough and mature enough to handle it. I was a grown woman! Well . . . sort of.

Though . . . maybe it was better that I did stay behind. I was still Vash's enemy, after all, even through what Knives did (which, by the way, I had already begun to form a large bruise above my eye). Technically, helping Meryl through recovery wasn't helping the enemy, not in the field I was working in anyway. I dealt with the Plants, not the genocide or humans; that was Joseph's and Knives's field of work. 

Speaking of which, not even I knew what had happened to the Plant and it was my ordeal!

Though Milly's whimpering was small, it still echoed around the large, empty room with might, making it sound a lot louder than it really was. Milly was frightened. She knew it was only natural to be scared, but she'd eventually lose her head and bend to Knives's will. That's just what he did to every other person- including Plants- that happen to cross his path. Why wouldn't it happen to her as well?

"I can hear your thoughts," came a soft voice from somewhere in the depths of the shadow-cast room. Milly looked forward. "Nothing will happen to you yet, worry not. You'll die with the others, not individually. Although I wouldn't mind hearing you scream in pain and agony right now . . . a mass of humans is more fun and I need you for Vash."

Milly was silent.

"Frightened? Figured as much. It's only natural, you know." He laughed, loud and long, more hollow than in amusement . . . 

"You jerk!" Milly said. "What did the humans ever do to you!" Knives stopped and approached the woman slowly, until he was standing right in front of her. Of course, she didn't know until he stopped beside her, whispering in her ear,

"You will never know."

"Meryl? Joseph, I think she's waking!" There was a small crash, a curse, then a thump as someone heavy dropped down beside her.

"Meryl? You awake?" Meryl couldn't talk. The feared that she would fall apart (literally) if she tried to speak or move anything other than her eyes and fingertips. She had been so comfortable . . . it was pleasant to her, that light was. It was warm, yet not hot, and the state of numbness it sent her in to was every so delightful . . .

But why was she in excruciating pain now? She gave a small groan, her eyes looking to her left and seeing Kate and Joseph kneeling there beside her. 

"Meryl, are you okay?" Kate said in barely above a whisper. Kate expected Meryl to hate her. Kate knew that Vash had told her about Kate, so she just knew Meryl had to be angry with her for lying. But either Meryl wasn't angry or she could bring up the energy to look like it, because she sure as hell didn't. 

Meryl attempted to speak, but failed, resulting in a loud groan of pain. There was only one way Kate could communicate with Meryl at this point, and that was to sift through her mind. She swept it carelessly, finding the question she wanted to get out.

"Vash went to look for Milly. She's missing." Meryl looked back up at the ceiling and closed her eyes.

Without so much as a clue, Vash still knew where Milly was . . . and who she was abducted by. The only problem was getting there . . . 

Vash knew perfectly well that where Knives was staying was basically on the other side of the planet from the remains of Fondreake, and by foot that was an incredibly long time. He knew that the only reason Rath and Kate had gotten there and back so quick was the use of Rath's wings. Unfortunately, Vash didn't share those traits with his siblings . . . or at least as far as he knew.

Kate's POV

He knew I was going to follow him. He had to have known. As soon as Meryl went back to sleep and through my unwashed cloak around myself and headed out into the light wind. Calm before the storm, I'd say. 

I knew Vash wasn't that far away. He couldn't have gone far. Still, his rather large footprints were leaving me a clear trail in the sand. I followed them straight out of town and toward the famous cliffs just out of Fondreake. Of my many, many years of living on Gunsmoke, I knew from genuine experience that those cliffs were perfect hiding spots for bandits to bounce upon the occasional unsuspecting traveler and rob them for all they're worth. I didn't think that after the town practically blew up I would see any bandits around there, much less Alexander. 

Alexander was a plain guy, really. Tall, lanky, but still a little handsome. He looked like a biker, clad in a black leather jacket, T-shirt underneath, and black pants with boots. He was usually showing off his all-famous smile with a cigarette in the corner of his mouth. His black eyes glittered with joy a lot of the time I saw him, usually signifying he had recently killed. This was a look that would make any girl swoon. Well, not me. He was human after all. 

He approached Vash, several feet in front of me, and pointed his gun at him, rather lamely, as though it were a chore. 

"Oh, it's you," he said with a loud yawn, taking the cigarette from his lips. "Back again for more?" They had obviously met before. 

"Down, boy," I said, coming up to stand just beside Vash. My tone sound just as dull and bored as Alexander's had. Vash looked at me before saying,

"I told you to stay with Meryl." He didn't seem surprised. 

"Joseph's with her. Hey, wait! I'm not on your side anyway!" Alexander laughed at the both of us but his next statement was directed at me.

"The way you were described to me I would have thought you an angel, Kate, so where are your wings?" I glared at him. Even though we had only met once before I knew he knew the story behind me and my wings . . . poor things they were, too. Probably take a whole 'nother century to grow 'em back!

"Ha ha," I laughed sarcastically. It was then that I remembered I had never shed any light on the story behind my poor tools for transportation with Vash. Well, I wasn't now. It was rather embarrassing, and I don't think I could stand reciting the story in front of this imperfect, mischievous mortal, who was very clearly laughing me in the face about it anyway. "What are you doing around here anyway?" I questioned after a moment.

"Keeping guard. Not s'posed to let anyone outa the city, including you guys, now get on back-"

"I'm looking for Knives," came Vash's very firm defense. "He has something very important to me-"

"-the both of us-" interjected Kate.

"-and I want her back."

"That silly little woman?" Alexander doubled over with loud laughter, taking the cigarette from his lips again for safety hazards. "Jesus Christ, Vash! How low are you?! No wonder your own brothers and sisters wanted to kill you, you've gone soft!" He then pulled out his gun. "Now, get back there before I have to shoot you-"

Kate pulled Vash's own gun from its holster at his side and pointed it back at Alexander. "I can guarantee this'll hurt you a lot more than that'll hurt us," she snapped. Instead of shrinking back in fear like the coward he was, which was intended, he gave another amused laugh, high pitched and irritating and stepped back two steps. 

"Go, go on!" he said between gasps of air. "Go for it. I'm not stoppin' you." Kate and Vash past him by slowly, watching his cautiously until they were pretty far away. 

"Uh . . . here's your gun," said Kate, handing it back to him. She seemed a little fazed by his sudden outburst. "I just . . . don't get it!" she said after a minute. He's an idiot! I mean . . ." She gave up and didn't speak another word until Vash thrust his hand out to stop her. She looked up at him, tearing her eyes away from the ground. "What?"

"That's why he didn't care if we went down here. I'm guessing it's also why he was standing post there . . ."

"Why?"

"Geysers. Steaming hot . . . Knives might need more hostages so he didn't want them coming out here and getting killed, but Alexander couldn't care less about us. He might've thought we'd turn around and come right back."

"But we're not," Kate said firmly, as though to finalize the decision, or actually an order to Vash. 

"No, we're not. We've got to find Milly . . ." Kate nodded and they both continued their trek. 

Inepril was a rather small city, but perfect for their next stage in plans. 

"Are you gonna do this or not?" Rath said, holding the large, black gun out to Joseph. Joseph hesitated, looking down at the gun in Rath's hands, and took it. Joseph really didn't want to do this, but he knew . . . that he had to. In a split second his wings burst from his shoulder blades and he was in the air. Rath was flying away from the town, prepared for the blow. 

Joseph's 'angel arm' at the ready, he took aim at the Plant, waiting for a few seconds, holding his breath . . . and fired.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I claim nothing of the Trigun series that is in this story; the things that weren't, however, are mine. 

Note: Okay, yeah, if there's anyone here with a problem with profanity, then try to, like, not flame me because of ONE f-word down there . . . aight? We'll just say Kate has . . . terets? lol

Chapter 12. Joseph

Kate and Vash could feel the tremor caused by an unnatural angel arm even iles away from the town of Fondreake, but looking back and seeing nothing unsettled they decided it couldn't have come from Fondreake. But . . . where?

"Inepril . . ." Kate said after a few minutes. "They're in Inepril."

"Huh?"

"Joseph and Rath are in Inepril."

"But I thought Joseph was-"

"I figured he'd stay with Meryl, but he and Rath are the only other Plants able to use Knives's gun, and Rath wouldn't use it if his life depended on it . . . but I don't understand . . . it's unnatural, meaning you and Knives couldn't have done it, obviously, seeing as you're here and Knives wouldn't want to get physically involved . . . Cal's dead, I'm here, Alexander's human . . . that leaves Joseph and Rath, and Rath . . ."

Vash nodded. "I see what you mean. But Inepril . . . is so far away."

"Joseph and Rath fly- oh." Kate hadn't told Vash that they flew too. 

"Anything else you want to tell me that I should know about?" Vash said as they began to walk again. 

Milly whimpered and looked up, her eyes brimming with tears, as a bold stream of light hit her in the face. She could see Knives's shadowed figure framed in the doorway with his hand still held on the doorway. He made his way over to her, pulling her to her feet and leading her back through the door. She resisted as best as she could, but it really wasn't any use; either she was holding back from fear of getting her head blown off or Knives really was that strong. 

He led her down some awfully twisted corridor and opened a door, leading her through there as well. On the other side, however, was nothing but miles and miles of sand and desert. He pushed her to cross the threshold and followed her. She glanced back over her shoulder and saw, to her surprise, a large craft that appeared to be a space ship, having crashed a hundred years ago. Most of it was buried in sand, but she could just barely make out the faded black letters that said SE. The rest was buried in the sand. 

Kate and Vash were already half way to Inepril from the mountains of Fondreake when Kate suddenly turned back.

"What now?" Vash said, slightly irritated.

"I don't want to go. I'm going back to Meryl." Of course, Vash had no objections to someone going to tend Meryl, but he knew she wasn't the reason Kate was turning back.

"What's wrong?"

"I just don't wanna go to Inepril, okay? And you shouldn't either . . . it's not like they'll be there when you get there, anyway. The city isn't even populated anymore. Knives made sure of that. They were just blowing up the Plant, is all. We're supposed to be over there, but as you can see our plans got a little screwed over so . . . yeah." 

Vash watched her walk a few feet before turning and walking beside her. It was about ten minuted back that Kate suddenly burst, "Oh damn, if I had my fuckin' wings!" 

Shortly after her outburst they heard a very loud scream. They turned, looking away from Fondreake and the direction of Inepril. 

"It's coming from the direction of Knives's ship," Kate said sourly.

"So then . . ."

"Yes, it's Milly."

"Then let's go!" They began to run, preparing for the sand dunes to come, when two figures dropped down in front of them.

"Nooo, you don't." They were holding Kate and Vash back, and through the thick screen of sand Kate made them out to be Rath and Joseph. Kate started shouting and swearing at them, but they didn't seem fazed. "Sorry, babe, but we got our orders," Rath said, picking Kate up by the armpits and bringing her into the air to fly her back to Fondreake. Joseph stayed behind with Vash.

"Rath, what is Knives going to do with Milly?" Rath was silent for a moment before saying,

"Torture."

"WHAT?! B-but, Milly's . . . she's, like . . . NO!"

"Nothin' I can do about it, Kate!" Rath said as Kate began to thrash about in his hands, demanding to be put down. "He's . . . tying her into a typhoon, so to speak."

"Is this to lure in Vash?"

"Partly . . ."

"And the other?"

Rath remained silent until they came upon the city once more, in which he replied, "For Meryl Stryfe."

"Vash, you gotta do me a favor," Joseph said pleadingly. Vash made an angry face.

"Why?"

"I . . . know this is against my orders and I deserve to die for betraying my master, but please . . . save Milly. She's a good girl, and Meryl's best friend, and Meryl would never forgive me if Milly died. I couldn't even live with myself if Milly was hurt worse than she already has been . . . both physically and emotionally . . ." Vash sighed and then smiled.

"You know . . . I was hoping you'd ask me this."

Author's Notes: Short, I know. Kind of stupid, wasn't it? ^_^ Not to sound desperate but . . . PLEASE review!!! I'm *sniffle* beginning to doubt myself :(


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Trigun or any characters from the manga/anime series. 

Note: I PROMISE I did not forget about this! It was written on the computer in my bedroom, and when I went to transfer it by floppy, I found out someone had spilled coke all over my disks, so I got lazy and didn't go find more disks . . . So I'd say this has been completed for, like, a month, give or take ^_^

Chapter 13. Plant

"But . . . Rath, what about the Plant? How do you explain how that thing disappeared?!"

Rath sighed heavily. He was hoping his and Kate's two-hour-long conversation would have been over when he had attempted to explain what Knives's plans were. 

"Kate . . ." he whined, putting a finger to his temple. "I don't know. All I can say about the missing Plant is Knives is definitely behind it and he's got plans for it."

"I can't believe he wouldn't tell me!" Kate said loudly.

"How is that so hard to believe? I mean, it's Knives for Christ's sake."

"I always thought we had- oh, never mind, you wouldn't understand. You're just a little boy." Kate stood and walked to Meryl, checking up on her as she had every thirty minutes for the past hour. 

"Little boy, huh, Kate?"

"Yes, you are." Rath only chuckled. 

"When is Vash gettin' back?" he asked aloud, not necessarily to anyone, walking to the window and peering out. 

"I dunno. Why don't you go and dig through his brain. I don't mind," Kate replied sarcastically. 

"Ha ha ha," Rath said, with equal sarcasm. "I'm gonna go look around, you stay here with Meryl."

"Yeah, whatever." Rath walked out into the street and took flight. Kate looked at Meryl. For a person who'd been unconscious for quite a while - no, wait, for someone who had been hit by an angel arm - she sure looked pretty healthy. The only thing that disturbed Kate was what Meryl was dreaming about.

"Joseph, how far away is his ship?" Vash said to Joseph over the wind. They had been traveling for quite a while, and with Vash's weight Joseph was getting a cramp.

"Pretty far away from Fondreak, but . . . Jesus, Vash, you weigh a ton. Can't we walk for a while?" Vash didn't even have time to put in an answer before Joseph dropped him and had to scramble, struggling with his stiff arms, to catch Vash. He eventually gave him a soft landing on the ground.

"Sorry, man, but you're not the lightest guy on the planet, if you know what I mean," Joseph said, flexing his arms to gain some feeling. "Knives's ship isn't that far away by now. Shouldn't take too much longer to get there, I hope. But sorry for the delay."

"No problem," Vash said with a slight smile. He turned and began to walk in the direction they had been flying. Joseph eventually caught up. 

They had been traveling by foot for the better half of an hour before either of them spoke again. It was Joseph to speak first. "Vash, I know this was my idea, but are you sure you can rescue Milly? I mean . . . Not that I'm doubtful or anything . . . I'm just a little nervous. If anything really happens to Milly, Meryl will bury me alive . . ."

"Why is it that Meryl's emotions matter so much to you?" Vash asked. Like Joseph, he himself was surprised he managed to ask that, maybe more so than him. He was, after all, a lover of peace, a lover of the lesser mortal. Maybe it was that his brother had never been like this, and Knives was the only other Plant he had known before just recently. 

"I . . . love her." He managed to croak out his answer, his voice a little crackly. It sounded more like a question than anything else. Also, he sounded as if he weren't sure of himself. His words had short hesitations between them, as though he were afraid he was choosing the wrong words . . . like Vash wouldn't approve.

"You really think that?" Vash said calmly, a small smile on his face. Joseph was completely taken aback. "You don't have to be afraid, these are emotions humans share as well. It only proves how close in relation we are to them. No, again, you really think you love her?"

"Yes, I suppose I do. Don't you?"

"It's a topic I prefer not to talk about," admitted Vash. Now Joseph smiled. 

"You know . . . speaking of Plants such as ourselves having human emotions, Kate has had some for quite a while. I though it impossible, and it's probably wrong to say this, but from poking around through her rather confusing mind, it seems she's in love with-"

Vash: "Knives. I know."

Joseph: "Is it that obvious?"

"I can't say that. For a human, certainly not. She only worships my brother, but not for a species other than ourselves. When Cal died, I could read it in her mind. She was hurt because she thought Knives was the one who killed Cal."

"And indeed he was."

"You knew?"

"Ashamed as I am to say it, I did. Honestly, however, it was only Knives's plan. Reason to kill. With Cal still around, it would take Kate away from her work. Distraction. Knives needs Kate to he won't have to do the work himself."

"Does Knives know of Kate's feelings for him?"

"Maybe, maybe not. Hard to tell what goes on through his mind. Myself, I haven't gotten within three feet of the man since Recognition a year ago."

"About Cal's death . . . If Knives didn't do it in person, who did?"

"Alexander."

"But he's human."

"Not an ordinary one, you'd have to admit. But Knives doesn't like him."

Vash gave a small chuckle. "Knives doesn't like humans. Period."

"Yeah, I know, but there's a different reason, too."

"What might that be?"

"Expert in Plants."

Alexander cursed loudly as his back hit the hard metal wall. 

"He can see you, you dumbass," Rath said viciously. "He can see every move you make. What were you thinking, trying to come around here?"

Alexander laughed. "He told me to," he hissed. "Why'd you leave? You're leaving your little girlfriend to tend to her friend?" He was now mocking Rath. Rath took him by the collar and picked him up, then slammed him against the wall again, harder.

"She's my sister! I had my reasons for leaving."

"You two act like more than siblings. Besides, it wouldn't have stopped me." Rath knew he was trying to piss him off, but he really wanted someone to hit. He took Alexander's shoulders, turned him around, and shoved him face-forward into the wall. He only laughed at Rath.

"You sick bastard," Rath sneered in his ear. He turned Alexander around again to face him. His nose was bleeding, but that seemed to be all the damage done. Well, that, and his nose appeared to be broken. Rath was on the verge of punching him, beating him within an inch of his life for what he knew Alexander was doing there, but a pain spreading from his gut to his stomach and chest erupted suddenly, and the only movement his body would allow was to fall to the floor.

He could feel his warm blood seeping through his clothes. He knew he wouldn't die, but it hurt like hell to get shot like that at close range.

Author's Notes: Such secrecy. Gods, I love bloodshed . . . Sorry for the lack of length for this chapter. I ran blank and I had history projects to finish (that were, ironically, long over due). I don't think I'll make up for the length in the next chapter, but possibly the one after that for what I've recently planned. I'm hoping to get the next to or three chapters out before my February history project is due (well . . . it's already been due, but you know what I mean -_-;)


End file.
